NaNoWriMo: All That I Have
by Viper of Grand
Summary: The sword art of the Hiten style. Its lineage long, its history tragic and bloodied, it was and is considered to be the epitome of sword mastery: It can have only one successor. It has been ten years since Zelos had left, but Irelia still awaits for his return. She kept her promise, to defend Ionia, no matter what. Even now, although a floating castle approaches, she waits for him
1. Prologue

Prologue

Heavy footsteps stomped on the wooden boards of the docks. The ships swayed with the tide of the sea, waiting for their crew to board them. Only one ship was leaving this dark night. The men leaving stood in a line. Their loved ones looked at them, all of them stony faced. They bowed to one another. Husband wife, son and mother, son and father, no emotion could be seen. They did not need to speak words or show their care for one another. They already knew.

That was when light footsteps could barely be heard. Towards the approaching people, a man ran. His long black hair seemed to flow like a river, tied up into a pony tail. Dressed in Ionia's national color of red, he looked about, smiling. His thin frame was deceptive, since underneath all of the armor and the clothes, corded muscles were coiled and ready to spring. He skidded to a halt in front of three people who had come to the docks.

A woman whose hair was reminiscent of the beating waves on the shore, stared at him with clear eyes. Her celestial nature, her smile, it gave her this divine aura as she raised her hands and pressed them against his cheeks. "Be careful," she said in a seemingly operatic voice.

He laughed, tapping her hand, "Me? Careful? You know I never am, Soraka."

The woman frowned, but the smile quickly returned, "You never change, not even in the face of war, do you Zelos?"

The woman next to her, clad completely in green, grunted, "It would be nothing short of a miracle if he did."

Zelos chuckled and started to obnoxiously ruffle her obsidian hair, "Hey, what can I say? It wouldn't be me!"

"This is serious. The League has refused to relay our concerns to Demacia. We need you to go as quickly as you can, we need you to be diplomatic..." Her eyes narrowed as she spoke, getting angrier by the moment, "Polite...Disciplined and most importantly...will you _stop_ touching my hair?" She batted his hand away, glaring at him.

A man's voice spoke up, "Akali, he is just a little nervous."

"Me? Nervous? No, never," Zelos laughed, shaking his head.

The man stepped forward, stroking his thin, wispy beard. He was dressed in the green clothes of the Wuju practioners. He stared at the young man until his shoulders slumped forward in defeat, "Yeah, okay, I'm nervous. I just, y'know...I kind of hoped Irelia would come with you?"

Soraka's soothing voice spoke up, "I'm sure she will come."

"She's still angry at me, huh?"

Soraka shook her head, "No, I do not think she is. She is just worried."

Zelos laughed and rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, just...that look, y'know?" His light tone suddenly took on a darker one, any merriment from his features disappeared, "I have to get going. Please, keep the promise."

Akali tapped her fist against her chest, and gave him a stoic nod of her head, "We shall look over her in your absence, Zelos. Have a safe and expeditious journey."

Soraka tapped his forehead, "May the stars carry our prayers to you, may the love of our country and those who love you protect you, and may your love for your country light your path, Zelos."

He nodded. He looked over at the man. He bowed towards the man, "Before I forget: Congratulations, Master Yi."

"This was expected of me, but thank you nonetheless," Yi bowed back towards Zelos. "Your father would have been proud, Zelos, if he were here."

The young man nodded, turned around, started to walk away. The crowd that had gathered parted for him. He boarded the ship, and yelled at his crew to lift anchor. He looked back at the dock, he sighed. Irelia had not come. If only-

"Zelos!"

He squinted into the darkness, barely seeing a young girl running at him. He motioned at his men, "Men, drop the anchor! Drop it!"

"Sir, we're already moving out of the dock. We can't-"

"Then be ready to throw the rope!"

Zelos leaped over the ship's edge, his loose clothing billowing about him as he flew through the air. He landed on the dock delicately, rolling to minimize the impact. He got to his feet, and ran towards the young girl who had pushed past the crowd that had gathered. He leaned down and scooped her up into his arms, "Hey, thought you were going to be late!"

"Zelos, don't go!"

He laughed, nudging his head towards the slowly moving ship, "They're going to kill me for ditching like that, but I was chosen. I'm going to be gone for a month at most, I will be back."

The emerald eyes of the young girl welled with tears, her long black hair messily fell about her kimono. She was sniffling and hiccuping, "Y-you promise? You'll come back?"

He pouted, "Irie, what's this? You're crying?"

"N-n-no I'm not! Something in my eye! I'm not a kid, I am not crying! I am stronger than that! I am not crying!"

He laughed softly, and pressed her head to his chest, "Irelia, I'm not coming back."

She paused. She hiccupped and stared at him as his voice hardened, his emerald eyes staring into hers, "Because I will never leave. You are all that I have left, Irelia. I will not leave you."

He reached into his chest piece, and took out a small wooden talisman. It had characters carved into it, they looked like they were carved by a childish hand. It read, '_**いれりあ**_.' He dangled it in front of her, "No matter where I am, you are going to be there with me. You'll always be there with me, no matter where I go. You're all that I have left Irelia, I will not leave you. All that I am leaving is this land."

Zelos leaned over and kissed the top of her head, making her blush profusely, "I promise that I will come back to Ionia. I will come back to this land, but until I return, I need you to promise me something."

She looked up at him, an overly serious expression on her face, and she nodded furiously.

"I need you to look after Ionia in my absence. Can you do that, Irelia?"

"Yes," her voice was stern, even for a young girl.

Zelos patted her head affectionately one more time, "There, you see? We each have our responsibilities, Irelia, as children of Lito. I must go to Demacia to protect Ionia, you must stay here to protect it. Can you do that, Irelia?"

"Yes."

Irelia reached into her clothing, and drew out her own wooden talisman. It had expert characters carved into it, reading, 'ゼロス' . Zelos tapped it, "See? I don't break promises. I will never leave you, Irelia. Never."

She nodded. He started to stand up when she rushed over and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him. She tightened her grip and muttered aloud, "Be safe, Zelly. Please."

He laughed and returned the hug, "I will, Irie. Your big brother won't be gone for long."

They broke the embrace, and she watched Zelos run down the deck once more. The ship was a couple dozen meters out. He bellowed at the shipmates looking at him, "Rope!"

He leaped off the docks, sailing through the air. He actually managed to clear half of the distance before he started to plummet into the cold water below. Fortunately for him, the moment his foot touched the water's surface, a rope winded itself into his hand. He gripped the line, and while skidding across the water, swung over to the side of the ship. He hit the side of the hull with a dull thump, using his feet to brace himself. He looked over at the fleeting image of the dock, and saw Irelia standing in front of the entire crowd of people. She stared at him while he was being lifted by the crew back into the ship. His hand raised itself to smooth back his hair when he felt something. He plucked it out and moved it in front of him for a better view. It was a flower, an Irelia, his sister's namesake. That was why she had taken so long to get to the dock, not because she was angry at him.

Zelos smiled at the pink flower speckled in crimson spots. He placed it back in his hair, and waved farewell one last time to her before he was dragged on board the ship, the waves gently beating at the hull as it lulled them towards a faraway land.

* * *

_The sword art of the Hiten style. Its lineage long, its history tragic and bloodied, it was and is considered to be the epitome of sword mastery: It can have only one successor._


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_Eleven years later. Present day.  
_

Hoofs trotted down a beaten path through a clearing. Not much grew in this patch of land in Ionia, not even grass. An assembly of armed men rode side by side one another. At the front of these blue clad men was their prince: A man outfitted in the finest of gold armor, which was adorned with dragon scales, and a circlet upon his brow which denoted his royal heritage. In his right hand, he carried a long and heavy spear meant to pierce the hearts of colossal beasts while in his left he held the reins to his magnificent stallion. He had a certain air of haughtiness about him, except when he looked at his companion who casually jogged at his left flank.

A woman clad in crimson armor, her blue skin peeked out from the metal plates as she continued her jog. Her yellow eyes flicked about with every step. She was easily able to keep up with the stallion and in front of the other horses.

The prince questioned, "Do you need some rest, Shyvana?"

"No, Sire. Thank you for asking, but I am fine."

He looked over at his right. A man wrapped in the finest of blue silks silently rode alongside the prince. The prince attempted to speak to him, "See? I told you she would be fine. You doubted her at the beginning. I hope this is a fine example of the Demacian spirit."

He said nothing.

Shyvana emitted a low growl as the silence grew. She barked at the man, "The prince is regarding you, sir. Do not be rude."

He still did not respond, he kept his head bowed.

The prince sighed, "What is wrong, sir?"

"I cannot hear the birds."

"Pardon?"

"The birds…" He lifted a thin hand about him, "I cannot hear them. I cannot hear the insects chirp, I cannot hear scratching of animals, and I cannot see the trees."

The prince nodded and looked around, "War. It is a terrible thing."

The man pointed at the clearing about them, "Where are these woods. Where are they? What happened? Why have they not grown back yet? Where are the trees?"

Shyvana's eyes softened. She realized why he was in such a melancholy mood. The prince sighed, "It was a strenuous war."

"I can see that. Do they know, Prince Jarvan?"

"No," the Prince shook his head. "We thought it best to not alert them right away. We thought it best to explain to them in person."

The woman next to Jarvan snorted in response, muttering a few choice words under her breath.

The man wrapped in the blue silks quietly asked, "Is she there? Now?"

"Of course!" Jarvan replied somewhat angrily. "Do you not think I would keep my w-"

"Just making sure, your majesty. I..."

Shyvana looked over at Jarvan, "Your majesty, he is tired."

"That is true. It has been a long journey in more ways than one."

The man muttered aloud, "Not that Demacia would know, watching the war unfold before them like that. Despicable."

The woman's irises narrowed. One would swear they saw a draconic glint in her irises, "Watch your tone, _sir_."

"Shyvana, no, he is right."

"Prince Jarvan?"

"Demacia did not act. Despite what I wanted to do, despite how much of an atrocity that occurred, Demacia did not act. It was despicable, and I admit that. As I said before, sir, I am sorry. I truly hope-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. It's just...hard to not say it, not with all this barrenness."

Jarvan sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "I know. But there is nothing else I can say."

"There is one thing you can say, or rather, tell me, please."

Both Jarvan and Shyvana looked at him questionably. The man raised a thin hand at the sky before them, "We should be able to see the Placidium soon, yes?"

"Yes, we should be able to. Why?"

He pointed upwards, "Is that a new addition to its structure?"

Jarvan and Shyvana looked upwards, and saw a literal flying fortress in the sky. They could see the Placidium in the background, with this citadel hovering above it. The prince clicked his tongue, "You would think we would have seen something like that. No, it is not a part of the Placidium. In fact...Shyvana? What is that?"

"Sir? Why would I know?"

"You have come to Ionia more recently than I, perhaps..."

"No sir, that is definitely not normal."

"Not even an inkling?"

Shyvana shook her head, "No."

"Should we be wary?"

Before anyone could respond, a deep rumbling could be heard. The horses stopped and neighed uncomfortably in place. They were agitated, and started strutting about. Jarvan, still staring at the scene before him, spoke in a hardened tone, "That answers that. We need to ride faster. Men! On the double!"

He looked over at his right, "I know you are a little rough for wear, but keep…"

Jarvan blinked. The man was gone. "Ùp..."

He looked around, and saw the shadow of the man flitting down the path before them. He sighed, "How is it that every Ionian can run faster than the greatest of steeds?"

Shyvana groaned and threw her hands up in annoyance, "Does this mean what I think it means?"

"I am sorry, Shyvana, but yes. You need to ride his horse."

She sighed and walked over to the discarded horse. She grabbed his reins and took him off the path, "Prince, I shall catch up with you as quickly as I can."

Jarvan nodded, kicked the sides of his stallion, and took off galloping with the rest of his men. Shyvana, however, stared at the horse. "You are not scared of me, are you?"

The horse whinnied, trying to escape the woman. She grabbed the horse's face and growled at it, "You are _not_ scared of me. Right?"

The horse let out a timid snort, and bowed his head. She jumped on top of it, and kicked his side to start walking. The horse tepidly stepped down the path, shaking and sweating profusely all the while, which made her sigh in exasperation. This was going to be a very long ride.

* * *

Soon enough, the silk wrapped man had managed to reach the gates of the Placidium. People were rushing out in a panicked state. A ninja clad in cobalt blue clothing dashed in and out of the entire structure of the building with blinding speed. A black haired woman clad in green stood at the gates, ushering people out while a Yordle jumped from person to person, keeping them in single file.

He could see even armed soldiers being rushed out. If he looked carefully, he could see council members of the Ionian government being carried by the blue clad ninja at blinding speed. The man moved towards the gates, only to be stopped by the woman. She glared at him, "Evacuating, no entry."

The two stared at one another. She blinked. She lowered the half mask covering her mouth and tilted her head. "You…seem familiar..."

He pushed past her. He fought against the tide of people fleeing when he heard stone snap and crack against one another. This was followed by haughty voice filling the air, "A legion couldn't stop me! What chance do _you_ have?"

He clenched his teeth. He pushed himself further past the crowd. His eyes flicked every which way, scanning faces. He saw men and women push past him, both soldier and civilian, and even a few monks. He had fought against the tide his entire life, he wouldn't be stopped now.

* * *

The silk wrapped man skidded at a hallway, several stories up. He could sense that the source of all this was coming from this direction. Numerous corpses that littered the hallway, all Ionian soldiers, all broken beyond comprehension. Twisted bones, weapons shattered, their faces contorted in their final moments. He remembered his father's teaching, "_Air is the same as water, you simply must heed the ripples, for __every ripple is the messenger of something yet to come_."

A loud piercing shriek filled the air, "Aaaaah! Y-you cut my face? You dare cut my face?!"

Stone cracked, a rage filled voice echoed and roared through the bloodied corridor, "I am power without limit! You are nothing! Just die already!"

He picked up his pace, and ran down the hallway. He ignored the corpses as best as he could while he ran. He quickly saw the light that at the end of the hallway, when he heard another scream of anguish, "Why won't you die?! Why won't-"

The voice was cut short.

What was going on? He would find the answer to this the moment he stepped outside. When the man emerged to the other side, his emerald eyes went wide at the scene before him.

* * *

Her black and white dress flowed about her as she took a final count of people that had left., she rested her hand on the last man, closing his opened eyes and stilling his silent death scream. She bowed her head, and stood up. The cobalt blue ninja appeared behind her, "Every councilman has been evacuated, Karma. What will you do?"

She calmly replied, "What is needed."

A blue skinned woman, with goat legs and a large golden horn that protruded from her forehead, quickly emerged from the window. The green clad ninja from before had set her down in front of the woman with the kimono. The two women looked at one another, the goat woman spoke in a very gentle, yet operatic voice, "I have looked over those I can. We need to go. Now."

Karma nodded and reached to her sides. She withdrew two folded fans, flicked them open, and looked down the path before her. Shattered colonnades, broken bodies, bent weapons, they made a bloodied path for the two of them to walk past, and one they quietly ran down.

* * *

More corpses, more blood, more broken and twisted bodies littered the pavilion. Uprooted trees, shattered stone columns, ripped up tiles were scattered about the scene like toys. In the middle of it all, was a woman with long black hair, clad in the crimson armor of an Ionian soldier, yet the Mantle of Decorum hung behind her head. It had no way to stay in place, but there it was, as it bobbed about. He could see her collarbone cracked into an awkward position, blood flowing from her head and dripped down below onto the target she had effectively mounted and started to choke.

The woman beneath her squirmed to the best of her ability. Dark magic surged from her hands, or at least, attempted to as it fizzed. Her silver hair was speckled in her own blood, several other superficial wounds could be seen on her curvaceous body. The black and violet clothing was torn, ripped, and bloodied. But he did not see that, all he saw were the hands that were wrapped around her neck, and all he could hear was her choking, crying. This crimson clad woman that had this other woman pinned to her mercy was choking her to death. He could see an intense, burning hatred in her emerald eyes, affixed on the woman beneath her.

The woman let out a fearful gasp, and attempted to speak. Blood speckled her silver hair, her purple eyes grew wider and wider with each passing moment. "St-st-glk...!"

The hands of the crimson clad lithe woman tightened around the neck.

The dark magic completely fizzed out as the woman's arms feebly reached up and attempted to grab her attacker's arms. Her legs convulsed and her feet scraped against the ground, as if she were trying to run away. Her head tilted back as spittle flew out of her mouth. Tears flowed down the coking woman's eyes, froth could be seen.

Her sword, a strange six foot blade with a sanguine crystal that hummed with energy, was now split into two separate pairs of blades. They quickly resembled scissors, which slammed into the ground. They pinned the woman's arms to her sides, stretching her out. She tried to cry out in pain, but all she could mutter was a fearful gurgle. He instantly recognized the blade, however, as he slowly tried to comprehend the scene before him.

"Irelia...That is enough."

He looked over at the woman who had suddenly appeared. She slowly walked past him while he remained utterly dumbstruck. He recognized her voice instantly, despite her appearance. The black and white kimono was strange, so was the bundled up hair, but her voice, but he knew that it was Karma. The name she spoke, though, fell on dumb ears. He refused to believe her. It couldn't be her, could it? No, it couldn't be, that was not her. Karma seemed to realize there was another person aside from her here, looked at him and frowned ever so slightly, "Sir, you should not be here. It is a dangerous scene. Let Soraka escort you."

Karma turned her attention forward, and called out again, "Irelia, release her."

"No."

The man's blood went cold. Oh gods...it was her.

"She dies."

Karma spoke again, "Irelia, do not kill her. She-"

"Deserves to die."

The woman she was choking was turning blue. Her convulsions as the tears from her eyes mingled with the blood that poured from her forehead. Maybe another minute, and the woman will have been strangled to death.

"Irelia, do not do this."

"Balance in all things. She killed Ionians. She dies."

A soft, gentle hand tapped the man's shoulder. It belonged to a strange, blue skinned goat woman. He looked over at her, trying to fit together the pieces of who this strange being was when she spoke to him, "Sir, you must..."

Her glowing, divine eyes went wide. A moment of silence passed while the two recognized one another. She drew back, she placed a hand to her mouth. Her body started to shake. The goat woman looked over at the scene and yelled out, "Irelia!"

"Don't care."

"Irelia!"

Karma called out yet again, "Irelia, please, you are angry now. Do not-"

Irelia tightened her grip around the woman's neck. When she spoke, it was the coldest, the iciest, even the most venomous tone this man had ever heard in his entire lifetime, "This self deemed Sovereign, this vile, egotistical power hungry child, came here, killed my people, my friends, and she thinks she can get away with it, and why? Because apparently she's strong, because she's powerful, because she is supposed to be power without limit. Our home was destroyed because I didn't have the strength to protect it. I will fight to the bitter death before I let something like that happen to Ionia again."

Irelia jerked the woman's head back, lifted her body and readied for the final push, "Not ever again."

The man called out, worry in his tone, "Irelia...!"


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2_  
_

_Nine years prior to present day, the battle of the Placidium_

The council members walked out of the room. Young Irelia lifted her head up. She was wearing her training clothes: a long sleeved, dark red top with a white lining; a pair of full cut pants that rested over a pair of long socks and a pair of boots that were bound in place by cloth cords. She had been sitting in the lobby for hours. She had to know their decision. She waited very patiently. She saw them quietly walk past her, heads hung low. Soraka, now resembling her goat form, trailed out after them with a young woman wearing a black and white kimono by her side.

Irelia looked at them, expecting an answer. None of them looked at her, as they walked by.

"What was the choice?"

None of them spoke. Irelia ran over and grabbed Karma, "What was the choice?!"

"...The council..." Karma drew a breath in. Her voice pained, "In a nearly unanimous vote, have agreed on surrendering."

All the color in young Irelia's face drained. She looked at the council, "You...no. What?"

"Young Lito," one of the councilmen softly spoke. "The Noxians have surrounded us with enough force to level all of the Placidium and our armies. Their war machines will arrive in two hours before they start to open fire. We have until those two hours to let them know of our decision. Not every battle in life can be won. At least this way, less Ionians will die. They have the technology, they have the strength, we...we are at a loss. We cannot fight them."

Irelia was completely silent. She was at a loss for words. This could not be happening. She looked at Soraka and Karma, her tongue looking for sound. The councilmen walked away from her, and left the three women behind. One of them spoke up, "Which of us will tell Master Yi?"

"We will all tell him. Hopefully his anger will be too divided amongst us for him to properly react."

Soraka moved towards Irelia. She reached out to the young girl, who was shaking all over. "Irelia..."

Irelia kept her eyes glued to the ground.

Karma finally spoke up, "Maybe...maybe if they were not so disheartened..." She sighed, and shook her head, "I tried, Irelia. I tried talking to them. They...they refused to listen. We just...we just need..." The young Ionian woman hiccuped. She pressed a hand against her lips. She was crying. "We just need to believe we can win. We just-"

"Stop that," Irelia commanded. "Tears will not solve anything."

Her ears twitched. She heard a loud, piercing wail rip through her mind. Irelia glared at Karma, "I said stop that."

"Irelia...?" Karma raised an eyebrow in confusion. She had already stemmed her tears, what else was she supposed to stop?

"Go with the others. I will see the both of you in an hour."

Karma and Soraka looked at one another, completely shocked. Soraka motioned to Irelia, "Are you comi-"

"No. Not yet."

Several minutes passed. Irelia stayed in place, staring at the ground. When Soraka tried to touch her shoulder, the young girl pulled away from her, and continued her stare. Soraka's soft voice barely penetrated Irelia's ears, "Do not stay too long, Irelia. I will be with the others."

The two women walked away, leaving Irelia alone in the flickering candelight of the lobby. Eventually, she looked up at the doors to the Council's room. On the wall, to the left side of the door, rested _that_ sword.

The sword of her father, the late and great Master Lito. It was a truly fantastic blade. It was six feet in length, with no discernible hilt or pommel. It was a double sided blade, with a sanguine crystal that was seamlessly embedded in the center of the blade. She remembered seeing him use it, it was a living, breathing being in his hands. In its current form, it was useless. In the hands of Master Lito, it was anything and everything. She walked towards it, she could hear something coming from the blade. She could swear it was weeping. She reached up, and touched it. It hummed at her touch.

She stared at the sword for what seemed like days. She made her choice.

* * *

Soraka and Karma stood at the podium. Master Yi was between them, his face expressing every inch of his rage. He could barely contain it as the speaker for the Ionian council rambled away into a glowing crystal that amplified his voice,

"...We have put up a good fight, people of Ionia, but we must acknowledge defeat. We look at you, and see the pain, see the suffering you have endured, and you know that we have endured it as well. There is no one here who has lost nothing because of this war. The Noxian and Zaunite commanders are listening to us as we speak. Soon, we will ask for our militia to put their arms down, and for them to open the gates to the Placidium. We are sorry, people of Ionia, but...we have lost. We cannot win. We will always be Ionians, but it will be under Noxian orders."

The thousands of people that had gathered were completely silent. Karma pushed her way forward, and grabbed the crystal. Her voice clearly cut across the air, "Are we going to lay our weapons down? Are we going to give up? Are we going to surrender and lose our identity, our souls, to the war machine of Noxus? If we do not stand and fight, what will stop them from doing as they please? What will stop them from ravaging our lands more? What will stop them from doing this to other people?"

The speaker for the council tried to pull Karma away to no avail. She continued her short speech, "That is why we will fight! We need to fight! We must fight! Who will still fight?"

The crowd bowed their heads. She could taste the despair in the air. Her heart sunk. This was it. This was the end. Master Yi's fists clenched, his fingernails dug into the meat of his palms. They even took his sword away, to make sure he would not rush into battle. He started to move forward when a loud voice boomed throughout the crowd,

"I will!"

The crowd turned around, and stared at the source of the voice. She had a vocalizing crystal in one hand, and the ancestral sword of Master Lito in the other. Its tip sank into the ground below immense weight. "I am Irelia Lito, daughter of Master Lito, student of the Hiten blade art! I am not giving up!"

Soraka started to move off stage, worry and fear in her eyes. She was blocked by the crowd of people from making quick progress, however.

"Who are you people?! Are you Ionians or are you pigs for the slaughter?! Are we just cattle, waiting for the day of our death?! We are Ionians!" Irelia screamed. "I will not be subjugated against my will! Just because they have bigger weapons and more bloodlust does not give them permission to trample over us! We are Ionians! Pick up your weapons! We are now all defending Ionia! Men, women, and children, protect Ionia! Your strength is needed! Use your hands, use your pitchforks and blades and bows or whatever! You are no longer citizens of Ionia! What I see now is a whole army of my countrymen, here in defiance of the impeding tyranny! What will we keep if we surrender? Our lives?!"

She tilted her head back and let out a mocking laugh. It was hard to believe that she was no more than fourteen years of age, "Is that living?! Is giving our freedom, our lives, our well being to these invaders worth living for?!"

The speaker took the crystal from Karma, and spoke in defiance, "It is two thousand against ten thousand. We cannot win, child!"

"Then what, we surrender?!" Irelia shouted back. "You may be content dying in your bed in a year or twenty from now, but would you be willing to trade for all of those days that lead up to your death, would any of you be willing to do such an atrocity, instead of showing our enemies that they can burn our fields, they can take our lives, but they will never! Never crush our spirit! They will never take our freedom! We lived as Ionians! We will die as Ionians!"

With that, Irelia shattered the crystal on the ground, turned around, and ran straight at the sealed gates of the Placidium. Before anyone could react, despite the heavy blade, the young girl started to scale the walls with far too much ease. Karma was frozen in place. She could feel her heart swell with fury, with anger, with defiance of their would be conquerors. Soraka, however, tried running through the crowd, screaming, "Open the gate! Open the gate! Irelia! Do not-"

It was too late. Irelia leaped over the wall and disappeared. Silence fell on the people. They broke apart, rushing for weapons, armor, and whatever else they could find. The council looked around in amazement. The fervor of the Ionian people had been restored. Karma looked at them, "So are you going to stand here and let them kill us, or are you going to fight?"

Sparks of magic erupted from their hands. The speaker for the council spoke for them all, "Duchess Karma, you will not join us. Your wisdom and your compassion is worth all of our lives tenfold. You will stay and look over the Placidium, we will go and fight. Guard it in our stead."

When Karma turned to face Master Yi, to ask him a simple request, she saw that he had already disappeared.

* * *

Irelia landed on the ground harshly. The weight of the blade dragged her down to its level. She staggered, and saw all of the Noxian soldiers staring at her. She got up to her feet, hefted her sword, and pointed at them. She was beyond angry, as she asked the opposing legions, "Who's first?"

The soldiers stared at her complete and utter confusion. It was one little girl against thousands of them, not including their war machines that were still rumbling into place. Irelia shouted at them, "You expect a whole nation of people to surrender, and I am not! Which of you think you can stop me?!"

None of them broke rank. Eventually, an order in Noxian was given, and several Noxian foot soldiers walked towards her. They unsheathed their weapons, and pointed them at her. "Kid, you're going to die here."

"No. I am not," Irelia hissed. "Why did you ask us to surrender? Because you know if we fought back, you will lose. Go ahead. Try attacking. I am going to kill every single one of you."

The foot soldiers looked at each other, shrugged, and surrounded her. Her ears twitched. Her father's training echoed in her mind. Her sword hummed in unison with her thoughts, it was as if her father were behind her, whispering the words into her ear, _Air is the same as water_. _You simply must heed the ripples._

The swords came down on her. She barely lifted the blade in time to block the simultaneous strike. One of the Noxian blades sliced her forearm open. She did not notice. She shifted the weight of the weapons, and dragged her sword along the blade of one of her attackers. In one strike, she cleaved him in half, including his armor and shield. Her father's blade was disgustingly sharp.

_For every ripple is the messenger of something yet to come._

She could feel some sort of strange intent from behind. It was a gross, vile feeling. It turned her stomach. She could feel their want to kill her, their killing intent. She remembered her father talking of it many times. However, she had never felt it. She tumbled forward, barely evading the attacks as they advanced on her. She needed to react quickly.

She dashed forward, gripping the middle of the sword near the crimson jewel, the only place where the blade were wrapped with bandages. She drove it through the stomach of one man, ripped it out in a fluid strike and sliced the arms of her nearest attackers clean off. She tumbled forward yet again, and cut at the legs of the final man still standing. His shins were bisected by th strike. He screamed in pain as he fell forward, clawing at the ground.

Irelia rose back to her feet, readied her blade, and glared at the Noxian soldiers staring dumbly at her. She growled, "Next."

One of the men, dressed in black robes stepped forward. She could taste the death that hung off his shoulders, the miasma that surrounded him: A necromancer, their commanding officer. He shrugged his shoulders and laughed, "Impressive, young one. Impressive, but foolish."

Dark magic ripped the air, he waved his hands for a bit, then fired it at the young Irelia. She awkwardly evaded the magical blast and she stepped towards him. The magical blast twitched and reversed course, striking her back. She could feel the inside of her body tear at itself. Blood spewed from her mouth and nose. She staggered, and sank to her knees. The necromancer tugged at the dark stream, and made it race back towards him. She could feel her soul draining out of her body, and race towards the necromancer.

"You said that we can never break your spirit. I assure you, we can take it."

Irelia disappeared. The soldiers that were in front of him that were meant to defend the necromancer did not have time to scream as blood spurted out from the new gashes in their bodies. Before the magic returned to his fingertips, the necromancer was impaled at the end of her sword. He gurgled a bit, grabbed at the blade, and crumbled to the ground.

Irelia's body shook. She was wracked with pain she never thought imaginable. She wanted to scream out and cry, she wanted to tear at her boiling skin, she wanted the pain to end, but she knew she had to keep fighting. She vomited a thick pool of blood and bile. Her body was going cold already. She could feel her life slipping. She looked around her, and the dozens of armed men pointing their weapons at her.

Her father's blade was at her feet. She could see the doors to the Placidium slowly open. They were coming. She had done her role, she moved them to action. She looked down at her feet, she could feel her life slipping quickly. Whatever the necromancer had tried, he failed, but it was still killing her. She could rest.

Irelia clenched her teeth. She made a promise.

She picked the sword up, readied it, and glared at the soldiers. She breathed in, breathed out, and said, "Next."

Their heads flew off. Twenty makeshift fountains of blood gushed their contents around her. She heard a stern voice speak to her from her side, "I apologize it took me this long, Irelia, I needed my sword."

Irelia breathed in and out, and looked over, and saw Master Yi. He flicked his sword and spoke pointedly, "You have moved them, Irelia. You have moved their hearts to action. They come. You have done well."

He looked about, his eyes narrowing from the absolute rage burning in him, "May I go ahead and complete your work?"

"Yes..." She nodded. "Go, Master Yi, plunge the art of Wuju through their hearts. I will catch up..."

"You have grown up exceptionally well, Irelia. If Zelos were here, he would be proud."

Master Yi disappeared from view. The only tell of his existence was the path of corpses that dictated where he once was. Irelia's hand violently shook. Blood flowed from her mouth, staining her clothes. She slowly reached to her neck, and with a shaking hand, pulled up a wooden talisman. She examined the characters on it, she could barely see anymore. She clapped it to her chest, exhaling a mixture of air and bloody mist. The gates to the Placidium fully opened. Armed men and women rushed out with whatever weapons they could get their hands on, the Council of Ionia marched with magic lining their bodies. The parapets were lined with archers and their longbows, firing into the Noxian forces. Irelia pointed at the Noxian legions, and screamed at her fellow Ionian, "Push forward, Ionians! Push forward! For Ionia!"

The men and women rushed past her, following the direction of her blade's point. The moment they rushed past her, she gripped her talisman tighter. She pitifully called out, "...Zelos? Where are you, Zelos...? Did I do right...? Where are you...brother...I can't...I can't see..." She fell to her knees, another dribble of blood flowed from her lips. "Where are you...? Are...are you proud of me...? Did...did I keep my promise...?"

Irelia slumped over, her body draping itself atop the sword of her father, her blood flowing onto it. Soraka rushed out of the gates and grabbed the still form of Irelia. She rested the young girl on her lap, soaking it in blood, and allowed her tears to fall on the young girl's face. While she wept, she wished, and prayed to the stars and to the heavens, and allowed her magic to flow from her corrupted, celestial body as best as it could. She wanted with all her heart and all her soul for this young girl to remain, for in her opinion, such strength had never been seen in anyone else before.

A crimson shadow prowled the top of the Placidium walls. A vicious smile curled about the Noxian assassin's lips. The Starchild was a target she had never been able to have a clear shot at. The honor she would receive for killing a being such as her. Now? Now would be the best time to strike.

The crimson shadow flew at the unsuspecting Starchild. Her daggers raised, and aimed at her back. A pair of emerald eyes fluttered open, staring straight at her. The sword that rested near the two Ionians flew to life, and pinned the assassin to the ground. Irelia got back to her feet, Soraka astounded at what was happening. Irelia looked over at Soraka, her eyes looking more like that of a doll's rather than the liveliness of a person.

After confirming Soraka's safety, Irelia looked over at the would be assassin, and asked her, "What were you intending to do, Noxian?"

The Noxian woman pulled her hand free, dagger in hand, and attempted to slice at Irelia's neck. Her blade cut into the Ionian girl's collarbone, and sliced off the talisman that hung off her neck. It clattered to the ground and away from her. Irelia looked around and saw the blade of a fallen Noxian soldier nearby. She picked it up, and shoved it through the offending shoulder of the assassin. She hissed in pain, "Ah fuck you, Ionian!"

The Noxian struggled to try and take the sword out to no avail. It was firmly embedded into the ground. When Irelia spoke, not even Soraka could detect emotion in her tone, "What is your name, Noxian?"

"It's 'I'm going to kill you when I take this sword out!"

An eerie smile crept onto Irelia's face. Irelia raised her foot up into the air and thundered down with a powerful axe kick. The force of the strike shoved the sword so deep that the hilt kissed Noxian skin. The assassin grimaced, biting her lip in pain but refusing to call out. Irelia beckoned to her father's swords. They rose up around her, poised to strike. Irelia's toneless voice calmly spoke, "Watch me, Noxian. Watch the despair you inflicted on us, and see what it has done to dampen our fervor."

Soraka wanted to reach out and stop Irelia, but the young girl's presence was too disconcerting. She had never seen anyone, never mind Irelia, in such a state. What had she prayed for just now? Was this another punishment from the Stars for her selfish wish?

Irelia turned around and walked towards the heart of the battlefield, the heart of madness. The sound of wood crunching underneath her heel could be barely heard amongst the clatter of weapons and the screams of pain.

The Ionians were being pushed back, the Noxians were advancing when both sides saw a the young Irelia walk towards them. The Noxians reacted first. The sky darkened inexplicably. Irelia had to look up to see that it was a barrage of Noxian arrows that blocked the sun. She could hear the arrows themselves all scream for blood, uncaring for their target. They landed shortly, promptly, and precisely. Many of the arrows firmly embedded themselves into the battlefield, yet Irelia was unharmed. An entire pathway of arrows stayed suspended in midair, creating passage for Irelia to walk through. They hovered only inches above her outstretched hand. A flick of her wrist sent them flying back to their owners, pointed end first.

The first screams of pain from the lips of Noxian soldiers finally broke the silence that had fallen amongst the soldiers. The Noxian soldiers faced Irelia, and rushed straight at her. Her father's sword split apart once more, vermillion energy crackling from it as she walked towards her attackers.

She would not retreat. She would not beg. She would not quit, for this was the beginning of the end of the war. She would make sure of it, no matter the cost.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_Seven years prior to present day - Ionia vs Noxus, League Match_

"Why are you arguing with me on this, Karma? The match is still in a few days, I can still fight."

"Irelia, you are not well. Please, leave this to Soraka and Master Yi. You have done more than enough."

The adolescent Ionian girl, now sixteen years old, stared at Karma angrily. She was clad in crimson armor, while the Mantle of Decorum hung behind her head. It was the highest honor any Ionian can receive, and one she wore proudly. Typically, it was meant to be outfitted onto the armor itself, soldered in place. She had no need for such a trivial thing. It floated in place because she willed it so. Irelia's long black hair covered her emerald eyes, somewhat disguising the anger in her face as she demanded Karma, "Then let me finish the paperwork and let me be a League champion."

Karma shook her head, "Irelia, you are not well. Please, do not push-"

"I am fine!" Irelia yelled back at Karma. "The Southern provinces, I can get them back! You trusted me before, trust me n-"

She violently coughed. Her knees buckled. The sword of her father whined as it floated over to her, making sure she did not fall over. Irelia braced herself on the sword for support while Karma spoke, "It is not because I do not trust you, Irelia. Please, I am speaking to you as a friend, I will not permit you to fight."

Irelia shuddered, eventually breathing again. She looked at Karma, "...And what if we lose?"

"We will n-"

"What if."

Karma looked away, "...Then I am not sure. The Southern provinces would be kept under Noxian control, and unless we were given permission, we would not be able to cross the border for any reason."

"Let me fight, Karma. Please. _Trust_ me."

The Ionian woman shook her head, "Irelia, I cannot in my conscience let you fight. You are too ill, not even the League thinks you should fight. "

The young Ionian girl laughed, and shook her head, "Karma, you and I both know that I am-"

"Two years."

Irelia fell silent.

"Two years, Irelia, you have shown the same symptoms. Soraka and I are doing our best, but not even our efforts have helped. We do not wish for you to die, Irelia, not like this. I will not permit you to push yourself any further. You have done your part."

"Not yet. Not until all of Ionia has been freed from those tyrants," Irelia sharply replied. "I was dubbed the 'Will of the Blades' by our people, I am the captain of the guard, a little cough will not stop me. Please-"

"Please trust Soraka, please trust Master Yi, please trust me, Irelia. We want this as much as you do. Please do not push yourself further, you have done enough."

Irelia sighed in defeat. She nodded and walked towards a comfortable couch nearby, "Fine." She tenderly sat on it, and reclined into it.

They were in the Ionian quarters at the Institute of War, the small city-like structure where the League of Legends was hosted. The League was a sort of government for the entire continent of Valoran. This was where the most powerful mages, Summoners, resided. Here political debates could be solved, war could be prevented, and the city-states could be monitored. It was because Ionia was an island to the northeast of Valoran that they refused to join the League. They were fairly self reliant, trading occasionally with some of the city-states, but otherwise they kept mostly to themselves. Because Noxus was not allowed to war directly on Valoran, they came with the Zaunites and their war machines to Ionia. The League refused to let any other city-state to intervene, and even barred them from joining in the fight. After the war with Noxus, Ionia was strong armed into joining the League through implication: Join the League or this can happen again.

However, the Ionians also saw a positive in joining the League. The Noxians had managed to solidify their control on the Southern provinces. Perhaps by participating in the League, they would be able to regain their lost territory. This was their best chance to do so with minimal bloodshed. A match was organized. If Ionia won, the Southern provinces would be returned and the Noxians kicked. If Noxus won, they would retain control of the provinces, and a repeal could not be requested for by the Ionia for fifteen years. The stakes were high, but it was their best chance.

Irelia tilted her head back, and let out a sigh. "So...Do we know who the Noxians are sending to fight?"

"Yes."

"Who are they?"

"Some strange clown, Shaco, as well as..." She took a deep breath in, "Both Warwick and Singed."

The sword jolted, expressing Irelia's opinion in her place.

"That is why Soraka and Master Yi are not here, they wish to prepare themselves mentally. They will succeed."

"...That is only three. Who else?"

"There is also Morgana, who is reportedly a fallen angel. And..." Karma sighed, "Leading them is...Katarina Du Couteau."

Irelia's eyes snapped open. She glared at Karma, anger lit in her voice, "Katarina? _Katarina_?" She would have said more if she did not start coughing again. She grabbed her stomach in an effort to calm herself.

Karma quickly walked over and sat next to Irelia, rubbing the small of her back, "It is alright, Irelia, it is alright...Calm yourself."

Irelia took several deep breaths in, gasping and coughing all the while. She looked at Karma and let out a very soft laugh, "The council honoring you with the title of Duchess, as well as admittance in the ranks of the government...Never expected to see you there now. You deserve it, you really do."

"I can and I do say the same to you and your achievements, Irelia."

Irelia shrugged and hung her head, "...And what of us? We only have Master Yi and Soraka representing us. Who else is there?"

"There is also a noble, but humble, rock creature Malphite, as well as Janna."

"Janna...Janna..." Irelia scanned her memories. "Isn't she the wind mage whom you meditate with?"

"Yes. She and I have grown better acquainted over the time we have joined the League," Karma replied. "She is an invaluable teacher and friend."

Irelia nodded her head while Karma continued to rub the small of her back.

"Then we have Ashe, a woman from the Freljords."

"The Freljords?" Irelia eyed Karma, "This sounds like..."

"A group of people whom Noxus and Zaun have wronged. Janna was an orphan in Zaun, who was subjected to their cruel lifestyle and has since gone on to better endeavors. Ashe is the ruler of her tribe, and was fought against the Noxians in the war of the Northern Barbarian-Pacification campaign. Malphite is a creature who has an innate sense of justice, and it has decided to aid us."

Irelia smiled at Karma, "Perhaps...I can relax."

"Yes. You can. Just as we trusted you, please, trust others, trust your countrymen. They will not fail you or Ionia."

* * *

A woman's voice loudly chimed, "AN ALLY HAS BEEN SLAIN!"

"Hee hee hee! Y'know, I never reaaaally thought about it till now, but! How do you stab something which has no back?!" Maniacal laughter erupted from a clown. "Seriously, he's a pile of rocks! I pick up rocks all the time! There's NO spine to sever, no tendons to cut, no muscle to dig through, nothing! So how exactly am I crippling him?! Or killing him now that I think about it! Seriously, anyone? Anyone at all?!"

"Stop questioning frivolous things, Shaco," a voice snapped at him. "And get going. Master Yi is cutting through the bushes."

"Oh pleeeaaase Morgana, you make it sound like he can get away! Upsy daisy, now you see me, now you-!"

In a puff of smoke, the clown disappeared. Morgana, a woman with purple skin, torn wings and a dark demeanor, casually tossed her hand towards thick shrubbery. A surge of black magic ripped out from her and entangled whoever was in the foliage. The very ground itself seemed to twist and blacken, becoming corrupted. Morgana spoke in an uninterested tone, "I can sense your soul in there, Soraka. There really is no point in trying to run or to hide."

She stretched her hand out, only to have a werewolf barrel past her and into the push, roaring for blood. "Sorakaaa! Ah ha ha! Caught you again!"

Soraka's screams of pain could not be uttered in time, due to the wolf man tearing her jugular out.

"AN ALLY HAS BEEN SLAIN!"

Another voice muttered from behind the fallen angel, "Shall we get moving, or should we just dawdle here some more? No no, take your time, sir, it's not like we have more important things to do today."

A bandaged man walked into view, his bored demeanor evident on every aspect of his person. He jerked his bald head down a path, "The esteemed commander wants us to push towards the tower and the inhibitor. Janna and Master Yi are-"

"AN ALLY HAS BEEN SLAIN!"

"Toldja I can catch him!" Shaco's voice rang clearly across the fields. "There can be only one!"

* * *

All of this was being shown throughout Valoran. In the League, and any large city-state, numerous crystal screens were viewed to show the events of a match. In the Ionian quarters, Irelia and several other Ionians watched via such a screen.

A ninja man clad in cobalt blue clothing, as well as a ninja woman clad in emerald clothing, watched the screen. The blue ninja flatly commented, "Ionia is losing. Their inhibitor tower will fall shortly, followed by their inhibitor. If they are wise, they can destroy the Nexus turrets and solidify their victory."

Irelia's fists were firmly clenched at her sides. Her fingernails dug into the meat of her palms so harshly blood dripped from them. Her entire body shook, her teeth gritted against one another. When the ninja spoke, she bit down on her tongue to stop her from saying anything inappropriate. She simply stared at the screen, while the blue ninja passively watched the slaughter this entire time. The green clad ninja looked over at Irelia, sensing her rage. She regarded the blue ninja quietly, "Shen? Perhaps-"

"No. Akali, look. This battle has been lost. The Southern provinces will be theirs. This is fact, not opinion."

The doors to the Ionian quarters swung open. Karma burst into the room, out of breath. She looked at Irelia, at a loss for words. Irelia continued to stare at the screen as a loud voice announced,

"NOXUS HAS DESTROYED IONIA'S NEXUS! VICTORY FOR NOXUS! WE HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT KATARINA DU COUTEAU HAS REQUESTED IN THE CASE OF NOXIAN VICTORY, TO BE ALLOWED TO SAY A FEW WORDS!"

The screen zoomed in on the crimson haired assassin's face. A long, thin scar ran down her left eye. She smiled and started to speak, "No no no, I didn't say in the case of Noxian victory, I said when we achieved victory. This was an expected victory for Noxus. We had rightfully conquered the Southern provinces, and just because those backwards Ionians wanted to try and claim our territory did not deter the Noxian spirit. Where was Irelia this time to try and hinder us? Nowhere to be seen, which really, goes to show how confident they were in their own position! With this victory, we-"

Irelia stormed out of the room, her body shaking and quaking with absolute rage. She pushed past Karma while her sword trailed behind her, blitzing with vermillion energy. Karma had no words to say to her friend.

* * *

A soft knock on Irelia's door could be heard. Soraka's muffled voice could be heard, "Irelia? Can...can I come in?"

A sword embedded itself into the wood of the door. Soraka stepped back out of reaction, seeing a quarter of metal impaling the door at chest level. The door knob clicked, and swung open. The sword dragged the door open, and flew back into the darkness of the room. Soraka peeked her head in, "Irelia...?"

"You lost."

That tone. She had heard it only once before.

Soraka's blood went cold. She stepped into the room, and reached over at a switch. She flicked it on. It was strange to see such technology, a flick of the switch and the entire room lit up. Irelia sat on the foot of the bed, staring at the ground. Only when the lights came on did she regard her visitor. She stared at the Starchild with those hollow, doll eyes, saying nothing.

Minutes ticked on by. Soraka eventually tried speaking, "Irelia...I...I am sorry..."

"Sorry?"

Irelia got up. Her hands were stained red, and when she spoke one could see the blood that collected between her teeth. She stared at Soraka, and shook her head, "You would not have lost if you were sorry."

She stepped towards the Starchild. Her sword crackled with vermillion energy and split apart, poised and aimed at Soraka. "How could you lose? How could Master Yi lose? To them? How could you?"

Soraka actually stepped back. She had only seen Irelia like this once before. "Irelia...I...we just...we were not strong en-"

"Then why did I not fight?!" Irelia screamed. She slammed her hand against her chest, "Why did I not fight?! Why did I think I could trust you, or Master Yi, or Karma?! Why did I think I could trust any of you?! I should have fought! I should have joined as a champion! I should have been in the match! "

"You are ill-"

"I can be _dead_ for all I care!" Irelia's voice cracked. "You made me stand by and watch Ionia lose! You made me stand by and watch our chance to reclaim all of Ionia gone with the ashes of our people! You made me watch!"

Irelia's body started to shudder as she stepped closer to Soraka, "The south of Ionia is now under Noxian control! Why? Why did you not let me fight?! Why did I think I could trust you or any other Ionian?! I am needed! I am _needed_!"

She suddenly staggered. She fell forward, violently coughing. Her sword did not move in time to catch her, her hands hitting the ground. Her back arched as she coughed a crimson mist onto the floor. She was shuddering, shaking, barely able to hold herself up, but she still tried yelling, "How could you lose?! How-"

Another series of violent coughs ripped through her. She fell face forward, barely able to hold herself up from the intensity of her coughs. Soraka's eyes went wide. She could see something strange, and not just the coughing. This reminded her of a very similar scenario, one she had not seen since before the war. "No...not again..."

Irelia slammed her hands on the ground, stood back up, and walked over to Soraka. Her voice was now toneless as she fell into the Starchild's arms, "I...I failed Ionia...I failed...Zelos. I failed them...Why? Why did I let you...Why did I let Yi? I...I should be stronger...If only I wasn't...If only I wasn't so weak..."

Irelia's wet coughs hit Soraka's dress, staining it with her blood. Irelia's eyes rolled back as she lost consciousness. Her blades flew over, touching and probing both Soraka and Irelia. Eventually, they clattered to the ground. Young Irelia still breathed, but was limp.

Soraka stroked the length of the Ionian girl's hair, shaking her head the entire time. Karma stepped from around the corner, worry on her face. When she saw the scene of Soraka and Irelia, she rushed over as quick as she could, worry clearly seen on her face. "Irelia! Is she..."

"She is exhausted, because of us."

"What-"

"I know what must be done," Soraka shut her eyes tightly, tears streaming from them. "I think I know what ails her."

The Starchild stood up, and motioned with a jerk of her head to Irelia's sword that rested on the ground. She carried Irelia back into her room and rested her on the bed. The young girl curled up into a ball instinctively, brushing at her neck, muttering for something. Soraka walked over to the desk, and saw the fragmented pieces of wood laying on it. If reassembled, both Karma and Soraka knew it would resemble a wooden talisman.

"What is it that ails her?"

The Starchild took a breath in, and looked at Karma, "I am not entirely sure yet, but I have a theory. It works, and it would correlate with the evidence I had just obtained. I think I know why our healing barely makes any impact. In other words, I think I know what causes her sickness, and I think I know how to treat it."

"So what is the ailment? What is the treatment?"

Soraka fell quiet.

Karma prompted her for an answer, "What are they?"

"...First, I must let you know, that the only way she will not succumb to her illness, is if she never fought again," Soraka plainly said.

"What?"

"She can never fight again. If she wishes to live to old age, she cannot fight anymore."

"...I do not see the humor in this, Soraka," Karma replied.

"I am not joking. Karma, I want you to listen to me: She cannot fight anymore. It is tearing her apart."

A moment of silence passed the two. Karma eventually spoke, "Soraka, you and I both know that she will never-"

"I know," Soraka nodded. "I know. That is why we must help her. I failed her today..."

The Starchild's shoulders shook, "I failed her and Ionia today. We all did. If she wants to keep fighting...the least I can do, is make sure she can. She will never forgive me, or the others, for today. Hopefully, there is a next time, and hopefully, she will be able to regain the Southern provinces. With her strength, nothing is impossible. With ours...all we do, is fail her, fail Ionia...Fail ourselves..."

"It is not your f-"

"Yes. It is," Soraka interrupted. "Maybe all of Ionia does rest on her shoulders. Maybe without her, Ionia is doomed."

"...So what now? How do we help her?"

"First thing is first," Soraka replied. "I want you to find a small leather pouch, able to fit around her neck."

"Why?"

"She needs him now more than ever. She needs everyone. She needs the Ionian people, us, and him," the Starchild gestured at the fragments on the table.

Karma nodded, "I will be back. You will tell me what is making her suffer and what we can do when I return. Please."

"I will."

As Karma turned to leave, she stopped and looked at the Starchild, "And for what it is worth, Soraka...you tried. You tried, Master Yi tried, you all tried. You did your best. That is all that was asked of you."

Soraka nodded as Karma left the room.

Once the two of them were alone, Soraka walked over and sat at the edge of the bed. She reached over and started to stroke Irelia's hair.

Soraka softly spoke, "Our best was not good enough for Ionia. Hopefully, it will be enough for her."


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_2 years prior to present day - Irelia's Induction to the League as a Champion_

It was a strange sound to be heard from behind the doors. Laughter. It was a sound she herself had pretty much forgotten. The gates to the Institute of War opened, and the unique sword of Irelia flew through. Irelia apathetically walked behind it, any sign of merriment that was once in her demeanor melted away within a few steps. She was a young woman now. Her black hair now rolled down to her waist, her appearance bore no effort save for her crimson armor which was polished to a shine, with the Mantle of Decorum hanging behind her head as always. Between the sways of her hair, her emerald eyes could be seen. Focused, determined, and cold. She followed her sword down the hallway, knowing her destination already. Her neckline could be seen, and if one looked closely enough, they would notice nothing adorned it.

Anyone who tried to looked at her, or heavens forbid wanted to strike a conversation with her, were quickly deterred. The look she gave them was enough to chill the soul. It was not a look that was of anger, or of spite or any such off-putting demeanor. She wore an expressionless face, just uncaring of others when she had a task at hand. It was stranger to see Irelia to smile than to frown, weirder to hear her laugh than her yell these days. Any Ionian or person who knew her well enough would tell you such a thing.

Only one person had managed to stop her midwalk. Master Yi stood in the doorway to the lobby of the Ionian quarters. His head was adorned with a unique set of goggles, the _Seven Lenses of Insight_. "You have been inducted as an official champion then, Irelia?"

"Yes."

Master Yi nodded silently. He shifted his body back and forth before speaking again, "When will be your first match?"

"One hour. Introductory match. Will you join me?."

"Perhaps." The man sighed, "Any news about the appeal?"

"Refusal to speak about an appeal again. It has not been fifteen years. The League has stated that they are conducting an official investigation in the Southern provinces and will get back to us and our list of grievances, but as it stands there have been none reported from the Southern provinces."

"That is because they are unable to give any reports. Our own evidence shows-"

"Our own evidence does not matter. We need more than that, we need to hear word from the Kinkou at the very least. You know that, Master Yi."

"A neutral party, the League, must investigate the matter so it is unbiased. Our reports mean nothing to them."

"Any news at least on how much longer their investigation will be?"

"When they are ready, they will tell us."

"And of course, it will be the same answer as usual." Master Yi let out a snort, and shook his head, "Despicable."

Irelia shrugged her shoulders. She stared at Yi with an apathetic look as she plainly asked, "May you move out of my way, Master Yi? I wish to relax a bit before I am summoned for the match."

Yi bowed his head, and stepped aside.

Irelia's sword floated past, followed by her. Master Yi tilted his sword about, she could feel the guilt emanating from his weapon. She looked at him and said, "Do not dwell on the past, Yi." The Ionian woman patted her metal fauld. "Promises are broken all the time. No point in dwelling on those that are broken, and try to keep the ones that have not yet been."

With that, she walked away. Master Yi strode the opposite direction from her, gripping his blade tightly. His thoughts raced, '_Every promise...I have not been able to keep a single promise to you or to your brother. I could not keep you from harm, I never found the butcher of your village, I could not even reclaim our own land. _' He glared at his sword, studying it, '_I am not sure how to aid you anymore, Irelia. I do not know what I can do, except trust in you, and give you my support. You deserve that much and more._'

He silently walked down the corridor. He flicked his blade, '_Starting with your preliminary match._'

* * *

_One Month Later_

"People of Ionia! I have asked for those of you who can, to come to the Placidium to hear what the League has to say in person! To those who must hear it from others, other sources, other people, know that your voice will be heard!"

Irelia looked behind her. They were on a stage situated in the Placidium grounds, in its fabled Lotus Gardens. There was a robed man sitting with the Ionian Council as well as with Karma, Soraka and Master Yi. A volume enhancing crystal was firmly embedded in the podium, one she spoke into, "They have their investigations. They claim nothing is wrong. Nothing for us to be concerned about. Who here has families in the Southern provinces? Who here wishes to visit them, and see the beaches once more? Who here wishes to step in Ionian land without fear of trespassing Noxian borders? Who here wishes to no longer feel threatened for choosing to stay in Ionia?"

She slammed her fist on the podium, her sword shuddered in response while her voice raised in volume,

"Do I have to mention the clear cutting that is being done? That we are able to see! The unwanted urbanization they are committing on our lands? The forced mining of our land's resources? The dispersal of toxins into our water supply, contaminating their drinking water due to the wasteful byproducts of their apparent 'industrializing'? Do I have to remind you all that one of their figureheads, Katarina Du Couteau, has called us? That their goal is to essentially, 'educate' the masses of Ionia? To civilize and modernize us?! We are not a bunch of backward, uneducated yokels! Summoner, let the people hear you, tell the people of Ionia why you refuse them, refuse us a chance to regain the land that rightfully belongs to us! People of Ionia? Let the League hear your voice!"

The Summoner stood up, dusted himself off, and walked over to the podium. They were in the Lotus Garden in the Placidium. The crowd was a few thousand, easily. They were chanting to demand to know what the League had to say. "People of Ionia, it quite simple. As you are all undoubtedly aware, the League shall conduct an investigation every three years of the Noxian occupation. It took two years to discern the true extent of Noxian occupation. We see no reason to have the Noxians removed from territory they have officially claimed and won through the League. I am sorry but your champions lost, and you must deal with the consequences of their loss. It will only be another ten short-"

The crowd started to boo him. However, his voice easily overpowered them, "Do not blame me or the League, people of Ionia! We could not intervene during the war because it would have been a gross misuse of power!"

Irelia retorted, "It was more gross of you to not only intervene yourselves, but to prevent the Demacians from intervening! Our very allies!"

"Those who are a part of the League cannot participate in open warfare with another city-state protected and registered under the League or else it can easily lead into another Rune War, Irelia."

She shot him a venomous glare. He had not referred to her by title, in front of her people. He did it on purpose.

"Because Ionia was not a part of the League, we could not intervene, and because Noxus and Demacia were, we had to make sure they did not fight with one another. We cannot endanger all of Valoran with the possibility of another Rune War. Such a war may have meant that the Rune War afterwards would be fought with sticks and stones. Not only does the League not wish to see such an atrocity, but I doubt any Ionian does as well. Ionia is not under Noxian rule, save for the Southern provinces who are being temporarily governed. I am sorry people of Ionia, but do not find fault in the League. Find fault in those that lost that match, find fault in your leaders that agreed upon such clauses and conditions. You lost, they won. That really is all there is to say about such a matter."

He shook his head dismissively,

"Another ten years, fifteen in total, must be allotted before an appeal can be made. Those were the stipulations that your leaders and your champions ascribed to, and they will be followed! Ionia is known for their diplomacy, for their love of law and the following of it. The League apologizes, but a contract is a contract, and it was signed by those that represent Ionia. Captain Lito may show her concern now, but why did she not fight back then? She fought for you before, why not when it mattered yet again if she is so zealous in the Southern provinces? We cannot repeal the conditions, we cannot give you special treatment, not when we already gave you the chance and you lost fairly."

He coughed, cleared his throat, and continued,

"If we were to bend to this, then other decisions could be swayed, other decisions could be questioned, and the point of the League is to stabilize balance, and peace. For the sake of everything the League was founded on, we cannot repeal this decision. You must wait ten more years. We are sorry, people of Ionia, but we cannot falter in this decision. For the sake of balance, and peace, we cannot repeal this decision. You have the League's assurance that there is nothing inhumane happening in the Southern provinces and that the conditions are still fit for any form of life. The rivers and water sources are being cleaned as we speak, and such harmful by-products of any Noxian industry will be monitored and watched by the League! Your best interests are with us, Ionia! That is why your leaders joined the League!"

Peace. There was that word, _peace_. This was peace? This is why they joined the League? Oh no, he did not just say that. He did not. They were strong armed by the League. Those dogs on the Council of "Equity" knew that Ionia would prefer joining over risking more bloodshed. Rather than chance being overrun by other greedy city states, or heavens forbid, a completely foreign entity, they joined the League.

She could see the people yell and clamor, demanding for something to be done all the while the Summoner spoke. Once he finished, unfortunately, the crowd started to fall silent, complying. In supplication. They were told that it was impossible, therefore there was no reason to try. They were faltering. Again, they were faltering. Give them a battle where the odds are against them, and watch them crumble. Irelia clenched her fists. She turned and glared at the Summoner. She wanted to make accusations, she wanted to say every single thought on her mind. She could see the crowd dispersing. Had she failed again? Was she still so weak?

Irelia gritted her teeth. What else could she say? She had tried for five years to convince the League, for five years to have the people readied to fight, yet they faltered. No. She was not done. Irelia slammed her fist on the podium, "You damn well know what is going to happen!"

The Summoner turned around, shocked at her outburst. The crowd froze as well. Irelia glared at the League representative,

"You know damn well what is going to happen! They know it will be three year intervals that you will check on them until the fifteenth year! It took you two years to conduct your investigation, meaning ample time for them to shuffle and to plan! What do you think will happen in fifteen years? Noxus will be ready to leave! They will have no reason to stay once they have stripped the land of everything it may have to offer! You know that they will leave behind a mess, a scar in the face of Ionia, just like the war has left so many! Do I have to even mention _that_ incident? After fifteen years, they will have no reason to keep the Southern provinces! The commanders and puppet rulers of those areas will have made enough money to not care what happens, emigration will happen due to Noxus taking back its people and everyone associated with them, and we will have been thoroughly ravaged! That is why we ask for another chance to reclaim those lands! After fifteen years it will no longer be Ionian lands, it will be a wasteland, dead land set to serve as a continual reminder of what war can and will wrought!"

The people murmured. They were shaky. This was it. It was do or die now, Irelia played her final card. The Summoner spoke with a blunt, unamused tone, "I am sorry for what happened to Master Yi's village, but you cannot-"

"Excuse me! Captain Irelia Lito? Summoner? May I say something?"

Everyone looked for the source of the voice. It was loud enough to be heard over not only the clamor of people, but matched Irelia's in strength. A man stood behind the crowd, in the middle of the lotus garden. The water that supplied the lotus garden flowed about him in seven different channels in seven different directions. He wore the robes of the Shojin monks, orange and white, and had no hair save for a single braid that stretched from the center of his head. However, it was his eyes, and his voice, that were most noticeable about him. His calm yet powerful voice, his warm eyes, they were that of a man who had something he believed in, and something to say.

Irelia nodded, "You may, Master Lee Sin." She looked at the Summoner, the crowd having gone quiet, "May he speak to you, Summoner?"

"If he so wishes, yes."

"Thank you, Captain Irelia Lito. Thank you, League." He did not move from where he stood as he spoke, "I was once known as Summoner Lee Sin! I left the League and became a monk of the Shojin order! I was born in the Southern provinces of Ionia! I stand now before you to tell you that you must reconsider your decision!"

"Summoner Lee-"

"I am no longer a Summoner! Please, do not call me by such a title!"

"Lee, you must have heard the reasons. We cannot-"

"But you do not deny that Captain Lito is incorrect!"

"The League will-"

" The League could have easily stopped the war by intervening directly! They did not, on the stance that it did not involve League affairs! How did it not, when a war happening besmirches the very foundations that the League stands on? Everyone in life will pay for their sins, it is the natural cycle of life!"

"You cannot say such a thing, Summoner L-"

Lee Sin waved an admonishing finger at the podium as he interrupted, "I believe I said do not call me by such a title! Please, respect me as I respect you!"

"You are responsible for the death of a boy and his entire village, wiped out in a single moment! You then refused participation in the war, leaving thousands of your countrymen to die because you did not act! It is only because your sister, who still lives in those provinces, do you do anything now! How can you stand there and spout such hypocrisy, Lee Sin?"

The monk shook his head, chuckling slightly. He shrugged his shoulders, his eyes narrowed as he spoke with growing vigor, "You make it sound like I am unaware of my sins! And no, I do not speak now because of my family or my birth land, I speak now because of her!"

He whipped his finger out, and pointed directly at Irelia.

"She has given up almost everything for Ionia! She died fighting for Ionia, and came back only through a miracle to continue fighting for Ionia! I am here because of her strength, because of her resolve, because of her love of her people, because she cares so much! My parents, heavens rest their souls, my sister, my brother in arms, my student, and this woman here are my greatest strengths! They are my greatest influences! They are why I realize I must act, and why I must do what I am to do! I am here to right a wrong, to help lighten her burden! If the League does not allow Ionia another chance, then they are truly monsters! Ionia asked for League intervention at the very start to the very end, but because they did not wish to join the League they were refused! They were punished! Now? They joined the League, and followed your rules, and have complied with them! Now they ask for another chance, of course they will give more clauses and conditions to benefit such a match and choice despite the fact that they are owed for your inaction! You refused to help Ionia during the war, can you not say the least you can do is to give Ionia this chance to regain what they lost!"

The Summoner tapped his finger against his chin. He eventually spoke, "Lee Sin, this is not a choice that can be made now. They have already spoken. All that can be done is to wait ten years and-"

"No! Not ten years! One month!"

"...Ex...cuse you?" The Summoner raised an eyebrow. "One month? For what?"

The monk raised his hand upwards, pointing to the sky, "You will have one month on this day, on this hour, in the next two minutes, you will have one month to give your response!" Suddenly, without explanation, a torrent of flames enraptured him.

The crowd screamed and retreated from the burning man. The ground blackened from the intensity of the reddish-orange flames. Hints of blue could be seen flickering where Lee Sin stood. He pointed directly at the Summoner,

"Everyone has their dues to pay! My flesh, my life, is inconsequential to the ones that I have taken! For the ones I am responsible for! I swore I would never practice magic again the moment I realized my sins! I thought it only to be destructive, that I could only harm others with my magic! I realize now its constructive use! The only choice you can make for me to put out my flames, is to give Ionia another chance! We are all but mortal, we all will pay our dues! Let my body be served to right not just one wrong, but all the wrongs perpetrated by the League, by the Institute of War that I had joined so willingly, let the fire of my heart cleanse our sins! One month, to this day, to this hour, to this minute coming, is all that my flesh will be willing to last! "

At first, the crowd did not know how to react. Lee Sin sat down, took a meditative pose, closed his eyes, and fell quiet while the flames engulfed him. Those closest to his proximity rushed over, stabbing their hands into the water and attempted to throw it on him to no avail. The water turned to steam the moment it left their hands from the sheer intensity of the fire.

Karma, Soraka, and Master Yi made their way over to Irelia, looking at the burning man. They were murmuring to one another about what should be done. A man was on fire, he was going to die. Irelia did not hear them. Instead, she observed the scene around her. The Summoner pointed at Lee Sin and screamed at the Ionian Council, "What are you waiting for?! Put him out!" He looked at Irelia, his eyes pleading her.

He was scared. The League representative was scared. This burning monk was not only seen by the Ionians, but by anyone who could view League matches. Essentially, from the northern Freljords to Demacia and to Noxus, everyone could see this burning man.

Karma looked over at Soraka, and Master Yi. She nodded, and stepped towards Lee. Irelia's hand stopped her. She continued to stare at the burning monk, hearing a new noise: Anger. The anger and indignation of the people. They were angry, they demanded the League announce their decision and put an end to his agony.

"I agree. We should extinguish his flames," Irelia replied.

The Summoner foolishly let out a sigh of relief when she glared at him. Her piercing emerald eyes bore into his soul, he actually stumbled away from her, frightened.

"His flames can extinguish right now; or in twenty nine days, twenty three hours, and fifty eight minutes. The League only has to say the word. The sooner they do, the sooner his suffering stops."

Irelia walked off stage, her sword sprang to life and followed suit.

She could almost sense the Summoner's jaw hit the ground from shock. Ionians valued diplomacy, Ionians valued the power of speech, Ionians were peaceful people. What annoyed her the most was the fact that her words were not enough to sway the people. Yet again, someone had to make a bold sacrifice to bring Ionia to action.

Irelia patted at her metal fauld, feeling the metal press against a small leather pouch that was tied securely to her belt. She was doing what was needed. She knew that, they knew that, _he_ knew that. He had to. No matter the cost, she would keep her promise.

The only thing that truly frightened her, was how easily she was able to give the word to let a man burn to his death. Irelia put such thoughts out of her head. She could not allow them. She needed to be strong. She still had work to do.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_Two weeks later - Day of Celebratory Feast for the Monk's Protest_  
_(One year, eleven months, two weeks before present day)_

A bamboo sword whiffed thin air. Irelia floated over the strike and leaped off the head of her attacker. Once she landed, she chastised the soldier, "The arc of the strike was sloppy and it had no power behind it, private! Do not be afraid to strike me!"

"Yes Captain!"

"Apologies are not needed!" She ducked and weaved away from several more bamboo swords that attempted to strike her. "Private Kenji, your stance is off! Private Ryu, right hand needs a softer grip while the left needs a tighter! Private Samara, watch that shoulder!"

"Yes Captain!" They called out in unison.

Irelia's ear twitched. She arched her back and flipped over a sword strike that was meant to hit her spine. She reached down, disarmed the man who attacked her and smacked his head with the bamboo blade, making him cringe in pain, "And you, private, need to control your breath more."

"Gah! Yes, Captain!"

She tossed him the sword, and looked around her. She was surrounded by five of her own guards. The rest of her guards were preparing for the feast, making rounds about the Placidium, helping where they could. It had nearly been an hour since they started training, and she could see them start to tire. That only meant they can train harder to her.

Irelia dashed forward towards the man she called Private Kenji. She gripped his hilt, struck his nose with a palm strike, and used the leverage of his grip on his sword and tore it out of his hands. She seemingly blinked out of existence as the other four guards gripped their heads in pain, red marks appearing on their faces. Truth be told, the little toy soldiers the League spawned for their matches, their "minions", were only slightly less proficient than these people. She had to train them better, she had to assure they were capable of fighting for Ionia.

"Never take your eyes off your opponent, no matter who your opponent is! Is that understood?"

"Yes! Captain!" They cried out, rubbing their faces tenderly. Private Kenji, a man in his mid twenties, rubbed his broken nose tenderly, whining from the pain and blood, "Mah dose...freaging..."

Irelia walked over, grabbed his nose, and snapped it back into place. "Sorry, Private."

"Gahaha!"

"It cannot hurt that bad." She looked around, her firm yet cold voice commanding, "Practice is done. Help where you are needed. Except you, Private Kenji."

He went white, thinking to himself, '_Oh dear gods what have I done this time?_'

"You will go see Soraka and have your nose healed. Whatever she suggests for you to do, follow it to the letter."

He nodded his head vigorously. Finally, someone to give him a break that did not involve his nose. Now that he thought about it, he never realized how true that statement was until now.

The guards walked away, breathing heavily and beyond fatigued, while Irelia made her way towards the burning monk. She crouched down in front of the bonsai tree, and stared at him. "Lee? I know you can hear me. Today is a day in celebration of you and what you have done. The League will yield, and you will be brought out of those flames before this tree withers. This is not in vain, your endeavor. We will regain Ionia. I give you my word."

* * *

_Six days later - 8 days remain_

"Why are they so late?"

Katarina Du Couteau, the crimson haired assassin, sat at a large table. Other occupants included robed Summoners, Karma and Irelia who both sat directly across from her, as well as an older man sitting at her left. A six eyed raven sat on his shoulder, his blood red eyes scanning the room with disinterest.

Irelia shrugged, "Hopefully they will be here soon. What are you so agitated?"

"Me? Agitated? Oh let's see, let's go over this one last time. Humor me." Katarina raised a pile of papers up into view, "These conditions. I still don't understand them."

"Are they unfair?"

"What's the catch?" Katarina snapped.

"None."

"Bullshit." The assassin let out a forced laugh. She smiled viciously at Irelia, "Did you get hit in the head recently or are the signs of brain damage from all that bleeding finally showing?"

"What my esteemed colleague is trying to ask..." The old man next to her grunted, "Is that these conditions essentially say that if Noxus wins, we gain these lands and we can govern them as we see fit. They become a part of Noxus. If you win, we return them, and you will be allowed to remove all unwanted Noxian presence. This is a double or nothing deal. Is this actually the deal, or is there something else to be expected?"

Karma nodded, "That is a correct assertion, General Swain. It is as you read."

"Duchess..." His bird cawed suddenly cawed. He quieted her with a soothing pat to the head as he rasped, "No need for formalities here, if that is alright. You may simply call me Swain."

"I will call you by title, General Swain, as I wish for you to refer to me and my companion, Captain Lito, here. Let us be professional."

"As you wish, Duchess." Swain had an almost bored look to him, "What makes you think we would agree to such conditions, as apparently favorable as they may be?"

"We already are gaining what we want from the land. We're educating you poor ijits in things like electricity, why would you risk it all if you cared so much for your land?" Katarina crossed her arms, her smugness nearly dripping off her person, "I mean the last time we fought in this match it was more of an atrocity to not end it as quickly as we did, rather than say let a man burn to his death."

Irelia drummed her fingers together. When she spoke, all smugness disappeared from the assassin's demeanor. "Du Couteau. The Sinister Blade. I did not participate in that match due to extenuating circumstances. I want you to know that the difference between that match, and this match, is that the stakes are even higher. Five years. Five years have gone by. I know what your people are planning, Lee made it very clear. His thoughts echo mine. There is nothing to hide, we both know this to be true. And I assure you, if my people wish for me to fight for them yet again, I will fight for them again and a thousand times more. That is where you and I are similar, as much as it pains me to admit. With that in mind, though, think of how hard I would fight for my homeland. You have firsthand experience of such an event. How many Noxians did I kill that day, Du Couteau? How many Noxians fell by my hand alone? And think, if you stand in the way of me regaining my homeland, something your people tried to take away for no reason save for complete selfishness, what will happen this time? You remember what happened when we fought the last time. You may have won the League match, but let the war be a reminder that only the battle has been lost. History will repeat itself."

Irelia's deadpan eyes bore into Katarina's blue eyes. The staring contest was broken by the assassin herself, who looked away and let out a disapproving grunt.

Swain sighed, "...I see. Well then, what is stopping us from simply waiting the ten years and letting this monk burn to death?"

The Duchess looked over at her companion, who simply nodded. Karma replied, "We thought you would say that."

The doors opened. A tall, muscular, regal man wearing brilliant, gold armor decorated in dragon scales thundered into the room. His long onyx hair flowed like a majestic mane behind him. Soon after this regal figure entered another man, clad in the armor of Demacia's Dauntless Vanguard, blue plates identifying their city-states' colors, walked in. His short chestnut hair matched his eyes that seemed to be chiseled into his rugged, clean shaven features. The moment he noticed Katarina, their eyes locked on one another in a piercing glare.

Swain, however, went from a hunched old man to a bristling old man. He grabbed the arms of his chair, his red eyes narrowed and resembled a predator having found his prey.

The golden armored man sneered, "Greetings oh mighty and powerful Noxian general. Hail to you, General _Swine_."

"So clever, princeling. Have you finally come down off that high horse or are you still tumbling down the cliffside face first?"

The man and Katarina simply stared daggers at one another, remaining silent. Jarvan walked over, screeched a chair back and sat in it. "You have, no doubt, read that Demacia will not stand by any decision other than yes you will take the rematch?"

"You will not strong arm Noxus or any other-"

"Oh, but I think we will," the prince interrupted. "You see, _Swine_, your people wronged Ionia in more ways than one. If you let that monk burn to death, while they are in the League, it is going to cause such an uproar that no city-state in their right mind would not think in pulling any and all support from you. Demacia is willing to risk war, and to step in ourselves in order for you to have this match. If you refuse, we will make you accept. We will risk such a thing"

"You bluff."

"No. You read the documents."

"Yes, even _daddy_will let you take such a suicidal endeavor. It's a bluff. They can wait ten years and-"

"No. They cannot," Jarvan crossed his arms. "What's wrong, _Swine_? Scared you will lose such a fight? Even you can appreciate the _tactical_value of such land. Go ahead. Try taking it. Let's see what happens the second time you vermin try and take something that is not yours."

Swain glared at Jarvan, "...I see. We were called here not to negotiate the terms, you needed witnesses from all three city-states and the League to show that we have seen the documents and conditions. This is the roundabout way to assure that someone in Noxus has seen and read the terms, and is willing to delegate them to Darkwill himself. Hm. How boring. I thought there would be room for discussion." He tapped his cane while speaking in his raspy voice, "We all know how that would fare, Jarvan. Two minutes and you would bash your club on the desk, asking for bananas and requesting me to stop pontificating with such large words. Katarina. Your thoughts?"

"...We can win. Easily."

"Is that not what you said the first time you came to our land?" Irelia asked. "Remind me what happened, and how you got your scar."

Katarina's eyes flashed with anger, and even fear, in them for a split second.

Jarvan nodded, "Excellent. Then just sign-"

"Me? Sign?" Swain let out a laugh.

"What's so funny, _Swine_? You are Darkwill's representative. Go ahead. Sign."

"Oh, nothing. I may be his representative, but I do not have the power of attorney. I will have to simply let him know that this is something that must be done. He will delegate with the other generals, and we will come to an agreement and alterations to the conditions."

"You cannot be serious. Those conditions are more than fair!"

"They must be looked over, and truthfully, this is not something on my head. I am not the ruler of Noxus. Du Couteau and I were asked to converse, and discuss. We have, and now we shall go back, and see if we can amend these conditions more in our favor."

"What makes you think-"

"You do not get it, do you?" Swain sighed. "Very well. Essentially, we are in a stalemate. Noxus does not agree, that means we are are seen in a worse light. What this leads into, though, is for us able to adjust the conditions on which the contract was made. Ionia made what they want very clear and evident, with very well placed wording and jargon. I commend you, Duchess, for your commendable abilities. However, that means I know what you expect out of this deal. Theoretically, I can put a clause in here that says if we win you have to pay a fee of a billion valors due to the time, effort, manpower, et cetera, that was put into this and the impact it had on Noxus' economy and the damage that the image of our city-state suffered and will not recover from in quite some time."

He pointed at one of the robed Summoners, "Of course, they will not allow such an unfair condition to exist, and they would have to analyze it, but the matter of fact is once we say we will agree only to these prescribed conditions that Ionia wants if the conditions we want are met and signed for. We would look like we are willing to negotiate, while you? The blame for the monk's death would suddenly fall on you. We were willing to agree, and you would be the ones who have officially priced the life of a man."

The general nodded, "Oh it will take some time, perhaps a few days, maybe a week, for the Summoners and the Noxian council to look over and come to agreement upon. And when they do? Ionia will have to agree, so long as their conditions, are met. If they try and add any more after this, it will be too late, and the monk will die and it will be completely out of our hands."

Jarvan's fist cracked the table from the might of his strike, "You feathery fiend!"

"No, princeling. I am not a fiend. That? That is called politics." Swain looked around, and asked, "Are we done here? Time is wasting, that monk may burn out sooner rather than later."

Swain got up, grabbed his cane, and started to shuffle out of the room. His raven loudly cawed at Jarvan as they walked by. Katarina and the Demacian man stayed a little longer, staring at each other when the General's voice snapped her out of her trance, "Du Couteau! Time to go."

She sneered at the Demacian man, and promptly disappeared. The Summoners walked out after the Noxians, and asked for the others to stay until they were at a safe distance. While they waited, Jarvan coughed and cleared his throat, "I'm sorry for my outburst there, Captain Lito. I cannot believe that monster would be willing to negotiate with a man's life in such a horrendous-"

"It is no trouble."

"...Pardon me?"

Irelia repeated herself, "It is no trouble. They will make whatever conditions, and we will agree to them. The League will oversee they are not too far fetched and the match will be underway."

The other Demacian spoke up, "You are not concerned, then?"

"My only concern is if Master Lee Sin dies before the month. It is only a slight concern though. I trust him."

Karma's eyes shimmered. She looked away, hurt beyond words, though she knew that her friend had not meant to do so. Irelia did not seem to notice, or to care how her friend felt at that current moment in time.

The other Summoners in the room spoke up, "They have left. Shall we escort the rest of you as well?"

Jarvan cleared his throat, "Garen? Perhaps you should lead the Duchess to the Ionian quarters with the rest of the Summoners, to ensure her safety. I wish to discuss some matters with Captain Lito before she leaves."

Garen nodded, cricked his neck, and motioned to Karma to follow. The Duchess nodded and silently got out of her seat. "Do not delay too long, Ir...Captain Lito. There are other matters to attend to."

The moment the rest of the occupants left, Jarvan straightened his back, emboldened his voice, and asked Irelia, "Captain Lito, would you accompany me for dinner sometime? I wish to speak about more political matters with you."

"Dinner? With you?" Irelia looked over at him, her deadpan eyes scanning him. "We can talk here or in a council room. There is no need to be unprofessional."

"I would like it to be a bit more private, admittedly. I wish to speak to you about certain matters. I want to know whether or not you think it is a good idea to send out another search party for your brother."

Her shoulders twitched. Her eyes instantly narrowed with rage, "You think if you can discuss my brother you can wine and dine me? How dare y-"

"You misunderstand!" Jarvan raised his hands up defensively, "I have been pushing to send another search party out for him for over a year now, and have only come recently to a good route of combing! I wanted to discuss the details with you but I could never get a hold of you, and this was the best time to do so! I thought it would be more personal and more meaningful if I were to ask you in person rather than by letter or some other absurd means!"

Irelia fell silent. She tapped the table a few times before replying, "After this match is over, after we regain Ionia, then I will consider it. My brother is most likely dead. There is no rush to find him. No rush at all."

She got up, the chair screeched back, and she quietly walked out of the room.

Jarvan wiped some sweat off his brow, muttering "That was close. Scary, scary woman there. I hope she feels better soon."

* * *

Irelia paused halfway down the hallway. She leaned against the wall and let out a squeak of emotion. She patted at her fauld, where a leather bag pressed itself onto her belt as she whispered, "I'm sorry Zelos...I didn't mean to...I didn't mean to say that...I misspoke. I just...You'd be home, right? You would be home by now. I...I have to face facts. I have to face them..."

She shuddered. She straightened herself, smoothed her hair back and continued walking, "But not yet. Just a little longer. Ionia is almost ours again. Just a little longer, Zelos, and then I can face facts. Just a little longer..."

Little did she notice the cut in the strings of the pouch, caused by the somewhat sharper edges of the dulled plates of her metal fauld.

* * *

***Author's Note: I'm aware of how the new Katarina got her scar, but I just don't think it makes a whole lot of sense. The old Katarina was a participant in the Ionian war and gained her title due to her actions in it. It makes more sense to me for her to have gained the scar in Ionia in a slightly more personal manner rather than nameless dude who managed to aim a sword that barely nicked her face in a straight line. It's not 300 so she wasn't even wearing a helmet for even the slightest bit of plausibility.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_Two hours until Lee expires_  
_(One year and 10 months before present day)_

Lee Sin was nearing his limit. He knew this. If he could open his eyes, he would see the bonsai tree was nearly withered. Only one green leaf remained. His muscles were atrophied, he could barely breath, but he knew his life at least held meaning. They had spoken to him, they had come to congratulate him for doing something that he should have done so many years ago. As he contemplated, he heard thunderous footsteps approach him. To anyone else, they would be unfamiliar. To Lee, they sounded familiar.

A gruff voice regarded the monk, "Your soul burns brightly."

The voice, however, was all too familiar to the burning monk.

"These people, these Ionians...They do not deserve such a worthy man. You do not deserve this."

Lee could not speak. Even if he wanted to speak, his throat had been burned beyond recognition. A burly hand reached into the vicious flames, seemingly undisturbed by the heat. The hand patted the monk's shoulder comfortingly, "We will find those responsible for making you do this. We will make them pay. You will have vengeance, we...I swear it, my friend. You and I, you and we, we will fight again. In this life, or the next."

The thunderous footsteps walked away, resembling more the pitter patter of rain than anything else. Lee moved for the first time in all this time and touched his face. He was crying. Despite all the fire, and all of the heat, he was crying.

* * *

_Nine minutes until Lee expires_

The doors burst open from Irelia's sword pushing at them, nearly ripping them off their hinges. She sprinted out of down the hallway, made a turn, and crashed into one of her guards. The young man flew off his feet and tumbled to the ground. He winced as he tried getting back up, when Irelia's strong hand grabbed his arm and pulled him back to his feet.

"C-Captain! I'm sorry, I-"

He did not have time to finish his apology. She looked over, saw the open window and leaped out it. The guard raced over and watched her fall three stories with ridiculous grace. A brown leather pouch caught the corner of his eye, and he reached over to pick it up. He noticed that a piece of the string had been cut. When he opened it he saw wood splinters all bundled and snugly fit in the leather pouch. He leaned over to the window, attempted to call out to Irelia but she was already gone.

Irelia sprinted down the Placidium grounds, out another set of gates and leapt down a flight of stairs. Once she turned another corner, she nearly bowled Soraka over. The Starchild blinked, "Irelia? What is wrong? Did-"

"The League has agreed! We have agreed to Noxus' conditions! The match is on in a month from today! We need to see Lee, now!"

Irelia took off running once more. Soraka trailed behind her, trying to keep up to no avail. They had scant minutes before his allotted time had truly expired.

* * *

Later that night, Irelia finally entered her room. Sweat dripped from her face, her knuckles were bloodied and bruised, and her arms hung limply at her side. She rubbed her knuckles tenderly, muttering aloud, "Increase amount of sets tomorrow..."

She craned her neck, "Today was a long day, Zelos. Noxus was almost too late in signing the conditions. I was barely teleported back to the Placidium in time. But, at least the match has been scheduled."

Irelia reached up at her hair, and held it up while her crimson breastplate unclasped itself and made its way to a mannequin. The armor promptly affixed itself onto it while she slipped on a loose shirt.

"And then I was asked by people to participate in the fight. They would not listen to me when I asked them to let the League hear their voice, to not give up, and they ask me to risk myself again?" She let out a hollow laugh, "Is it strange that I find such a thing ridiculous? That words cannot move the Ionian people, the very words they pride themselves so damn much on? It has to be action to move them. Karma..."

Her laughter increased as she shook her head, "Poor Karma. They didn't listen to her. Even the Noxian commander with the hostages listened to her, but our own people? No, tsk tsk, that's far too farfetched. The more I think about it, the stupider it becomes. The war required me to jump headfirst to death to get their asses moving. This time? It took a man to set himself on fire to get them and everyone else to move to action. How ridiculous is all of this?"

Irelia sighed, and patted at her fauld, "It doesn't matter. Soon Ionia will be back in Ionian hands and no one elses. I'm sorry I'm complaining so much, Zelos. I'm just a bit...stress...ed..."

She tore off her fauld. The metal plates noisily clanged to the ground as she scanned her belt for the leather pouch. Her eyes went wide, she started looking about in the room in a panic, "No no no, no no, no no no, I didn't lose him, not again. I didn't lose him, he must have fallen somewhere, no no no."

Irelia's sword skewered her bed, mattress and frame, and easily lifted it into the air. She scrambled underneath bed, trying to find where the pouch had gone. She rolled way, slamming the bed onto the floor. The sword split apart into four separate blades and started screeching about the room, the edge of the blades tearing into stone, wood and anywhere else she thought suspect.

Outside her room, several men were walking towards her door.

"You sure asking the Captain now for a day off is a good idea, Kenji?"

"Oh sure, did you see the mood she was in? The mood we're all in? Come on, we can take day off from training. I'm absolutely posi-"

A loud, piercing scream of absolute frustration erupted from her room. They could see the oak door bend and groan from something striking it within the room. The three guards looked at one another, and shoved the man named Kenji down the hallway, "Go get Duchess Karma. We'll stand guard."

In her room, Irelia cupped her face, violently shaking and shuddering. How could she be so stupid and lose him? How could she lose him again? Where was she earlier? What had she done? She ran so far and quickly, he could be anywhere in the Placidium. He was tied securely to her belt though, she had been in League matches with him for heavens' sake. It didn't make sense, she didn't lose him, she couldn't, not now, he couldn't leave now, he wouldn't leave her. Not again.

She barely heard Karma knock on the door, and ask, "Irelia? What is wrong?"

"Where is it?!" Irelia's armor had been scattered about the room, leaving her to wear essentially only her long shirt and a pair of modest shorts. Her furniture was all but destroyed, her bed was quartered, her desk torn apart, her armoire shattered with any clothing shredded. Irelia's blades continued to slide about the room, probing and seeking for her lost object.

"No no no, where is it?!"

Irelia punched the marble floor, the target of her strike shattering from the sheer brute force of it. "No! No! I didn't lose it!"

With one large sweep of her hand, her blades swept away any fragmented furniture away from her as she continued to comb through the wreckage, "Not again! I can't lose it again!" It almost sounded like she was panicking, "It's here, right? It's right here! I know it is! So why can't I hear it? Why can't I hear him?!"

Irelia did not hear Karma walk into the room, nor did she realize it was her. The moment the Duchess touched her shoulder, Irelia shot to her feet, spun around and grabbed Karma's hand. She raised her own hand back, clenched in a fist, ready to strike in a moment's notice. Her face was contorted with absolute anger. Karma simply stared at Irelia and waited for her friend to calm down. Irelia eventually complied, and slumped down to the floor.

For over an hour, neither of them spoke. Irelia broke the silence, "I...I lost it."

"Yes. You did. What did you lose?"

Irelia cast her hand around the room, her tone dispassionate, "I wanted to tell Zelos what happened today, but...I can't find him. I can't hear his voice..." Irelia's shoulders started to shake with emotion. He was gone again...except, he never left a second time, or a third time even, now did he? He was never here in the first place. In all of these years, and he was still not here. Perhaps this was for the best. What point was there holding out any more hope? He was as good as dead. He is not here for her, or for Ionia or for anything or anyone else. Maybe she should follow her own advice, face facts, and stop holding out such bleak hope for his return.

It was Zelos. He would do anything to come back to Ionia, to come back for her, anything at all. Yet...it was nearly a decade. To hold such a childish idea, such a silly attachment, was not befitting the Will of the Blades, the symbol of Ionian fervor. That little girl was not needed. Ionia needed a fighter, they asked for her for them, to regain their land. That is who they wanted, that is who they needed. They needed the Will of the Blades, not Irelia Lito. There was no point for hoping for something so selfish. She had to focus on what she currently has and what she needs to do. She still had work to do.

* * *

_One week later_

Irelia's lifeless eyes scanned the documents before her. Her black hair was smoothed back behind her as she looked through page after page of forms. They were from friendly city-state and neutral city-state Champions who formally requested to help represent Ionia in their rematch against Noxus. She had a rejected pile, and was going through the other applicants. She was making sure this time that those who represent them will not fail. She knew that Master Yi and Soraka would not only be insulted, but devastated if she did not ask them to represent Ionia. Irelia herself would also represent Ionia, which meant that the only other Ionian champions that could participate were the Kinkou. She put no faith in them, since they did not aid the Ionians during the war. Why should they help now?

Irelia muttered aloud, "Alistar the Minotaur...He has a grudge against the Noxians. That will work."

"He is also a capable fighter and a bull of strong conviction," a monotonous voice said.

Irelia looked behind her to see three ninjas. One was a man dressed in a blue uniform from head to toe; the other was a woman with long, black hair and a kunoichi outfit that was as green as her eyes; the third was a yordle dressed in a dark violet. The three elite members of the Kinkou: The Eye of Twilight, the Fist of Shadow, and the Heart of the Tempest.

"Shen, Akali, Kennen. What do you want?"

The blue ninja, Shen, flatly stated, "I am letting you know that Ionia has the support of the Kinkou in this rematch."

"...Why?"

The yordle, Kennen, blinked in surprise, "Scuse me? Uh, why not? Isn't that good?"

"I asked why because this is not Kinkou affairs. The war was not Kinkou affairs, why would the rematch be of any concern?"

"Because the Noxian occupation is disrupting the balance. The Kinkou have spent the past two years investigating the territories ourselves. Unfortunately, due to the status of the Kinkou being based in Ionia, our reports would count as null and void. With the evidence gathered, I have deemed that for the sake of balance, Ionia regains what it lost."

Irelia stared at Shen, matching his expressionless, almost lifeless, demeanor bit for bit. It actually made Kennen silently whistle in more surprise. "You did not aid Ionia when it needed it most. You did not help during the war."

"No. The Kinkou did not. There were other affairs that had to be taken care of."

"Then the war was according to balance?"

"People die. That is life. That is natural. The chemical weapons to elicit mass destruction? Those were not. Ionia won and that is the only reason our ineptitude was not capitalized upon. You know how much the Kinkou have contributed to the rebuilding efforts. Analysis of the Southern provinces shows an imbalance, and with this rematch underway, you have our strength at your disposal, Captain Irelia Lito."

Irelia nodded her head, and looked at the three ninjas. "All three of you are in agreement then?"

"Yes," they replied in unison.

Irelia wrote their names down on a ledger and nodded her head, "That makes six Ionians representing Ionia. The announcement for the champions will be in a day at the Lotus gardens of the Placidium. Thank you for your support, Kinkou."

The three ninjas bowed, and disappeared. With Kinkou support on their side, and her own strength, she knew they were assured victory. She was right in choosing to fight.

Several kilometers away, in the nearby forests of the Placidium, the three ninjas ran. Akali asked, "Shen. May I ask why all three of us were required?"

"What do you mean, Akali?"

"I mean why not just me and Kennen? Why are you needed?"

"That is simple: Irelia is pushing herself too hard, to become something she is not, and veering off her path."

That seemed like a fairly ambiguous answer. Akali nodded in agreement, "Nothing short of death is going to stop her, though. She will be assured to be in the match."

"That's why all three of us are gonna be in it!" Kennen chirped. "All three of us will make sure she's fine, Akali! Don't worry so much!"

The green ninja stared at Shen during their run. Despite his neutral expression, she knew there was something he was not telling them. She knew better than to question him, though. She trusted his judgement. Always. He said this was to help Irelia? Fine. Let it help her cousin.

* * *

_Nearly three weeks later. Night before the Ionia vs Noxus Rematch_

"I am going for a walk," Irelia stated plainly.

Soraka attempted to speak to her, "Do not strain yourself, Irelia. Tomorrow is-"

"I know."

With that, Irelia walked out of the Ionian quarters, her sword trailing behind her. The Starchild sighed and shook her head. She felt Karma's hand pat her shoulder, "Get some sleep, Soraka. I will wait for her return."

The two women exchanged a worried glance. They had tried to convince Irelia not to participate in the match, they were scared of what may result with her participating, but Irelia insisted. There was no way to dissuade her once she has chosen something. The Starchild could not help but silently laugh at the affair. She could not help but think of how much Irelia reminded her so much of both Irelia's mother and her father. Stubborn to a fault. Very few things could convicne her of otherwise, and he was not here.

Outside the Institute, Irelia strolled through the moonlit forest. Thoughts hummed through her head. On the Ionian side, it was her; Amumu, the Sad Mummy; Kennen, the Heart of the Tempest; Ashe, the Frost Archer; and Soraka, the Starchild, against the Noxians.

Her sword hummed as it twirled about her, as if trying to form a barrier around her. The Noxians chose: Morgana, the Fallen Angel; Miss Fortune, the Bounty Hunter from Bilgewater; Singed, the Mad Chemist; Sion, the Undead Warrior; and Vladimir, the Hemomancer.

It would be a tough match, that much could be said for sure. She clenched her fists. It did not matter. She would wipe them from the face of Runeterra if she had to. She would regain Ionia back.

Her ear suddenly twitched. The slightest sound of a cracked twig alerted her to an attacker. A beastial man rocketed his fist forward, aiming at her jaw. He was occluded by the natural shadows of the forest, despite the moon shining down on them. He had waited for her to venture to the darker side before he decided to strike.

Irelia barely dodged the fist that flew at her. While she regained her composure, the man chuckled, "You will be able to put up a decent fight, swordswoman. Come."

She narrowed her eyes to better see him. Now that the moon shined down on him, she could discern who he was. The bear pelt that enveloped his head and his back, the black gi and hakama, his tanned skin, his dark beard, and his primal blue eyes said it all. "Udyr. What do you think you're doing?"

Udyr rolled his shoulders, sending out a wave of harsh heat, "We have waited for this moment. We wish vengeance on you. You will fight us."

"Funny! You want vengeance!" She let out a very abrupt, mock filled laugh at him before speaking again, "How about you take your petty vengeance out on me tomorrow evening? I have a match to fight in a few hours. Good night."

Irelia turned away from him and started to walk away. She felt a vice-like hand grip her shoulder. She was not supposed to exert herself so she heaved the large man over her head and backed away from him. Udyr landed easily on his feet, stretching his muscles casually.

Irelia became more abrasive, "Go away Udyr. You tried to embarrass me in front of all of Ionia, demanding you be a part of the Ionian representatives, and then you embarrass me when you do not even show for a single meeting. I have too much at stake tomorrow morning to pander to you and your stupidity. Good. Night."

"You will pay for what you did." Udyr clenched his fist, "It is because of you that he will never see again."

"It is because of me that…" It clicked in her head. Irelia raised an eyebrow, Wait, you mean Master Lee? What did I-"

A fist unexpectedly struck her in the stomach. She was not able to sense him. The strike sent her catapulting through the air from the ridiculous force. Her sword raced after her and managed to barely catch her before she fell to the ground. Irelia coughed from the blow, recovering far quicker than any mortal was meant to. She could feel a presence approaching, but could not see it. She just had to bide her time and...Now.

Irelia caught the hand that attempted to grapple her from behind, she felt Udyr's hand dislocate from the forceful twist she gave him. "Enough of this, Udyr! I will hurt you!"

"We will kill you!" Udyr leapt at the young Ionian woman, his hand snapped back into place. He was clearly intent on ripping her to shreds.

If he wanted to die so much, then Irelia would oblige him. In a few scant hours, she should be in a match to help regain the loss land of Ionia. Yet here she was, having her own countryman attack her. It mattered not. She would not let anyone take away Ionia from her, no matter who it was. Only she can protect Ionia, only she can reclaim it.

Her lifeless eyes flashed with anger as she blocked his attack via her weapon. The metal of her sword vibrated from his strike. Through her willpower, the weapon split apart into four separate blades and blitzed with vermillion energy. She was not too weak to defend Ionia, she will never be weak again. Never again, no matter the cost.

"Fine."


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_Night before Ionia vs Noxus rematch_  
_(1 year 9 months before present day)_

In Ionia, in the sleeping quarters of the Placidium guard units, a young man was still awake. The candles on the desk burned brightly. He had a pair of tweezers in hand, retrieving a splinter of wood within its pincers from a small leather pouch. A bowl of glue was near his left arm. His left hand was holding a small horse hair brush, one dipped in the adhesive. He carefully placed a drop of the blue onto the wood. With a steady hand, he placed the splinter in place. He placed the brush into the bowl and sighed. He rubbed his face from fatigue and stress, this was a tiresome process. He still had about a quarter of the talisman to repair, but at least some of the writing that had been carved into it was legible enough to read, "`ゼロ". A character seemed to be missing.

He put the tweezers down and made his way back to bed. "Hopefully the Captain isn't too angry about this. When it's done I'll just leave it in her room, she can't figure out it was me, right?"

The young man was too tired to think. Besides, there was more drama for him and the rest of Ionia in the morning.

* * *

The two fighters stopped, panting heavily from their wounds. Blood flowed from Irelia's nose and lips, while Udyr's forearm was sliced so deeply that the bone was exposed. This did not seem to deter the beast man as he cracked his neck in anticipation of the next attack.

Irelia raised a hand defensively, stopping him from attacking as she questioned, "Before we continue this stupidity, why are you attacking me? What had I done to Master Lee to anger you so? I'm surprised you know him at all, I would not imagine him associating with a beast like you."

Udyr jabbed a finger directly at the young Ionian woman, "He and we fought each other when we were young. We met at one of those monastery tournaments and he became our greatest rival. Only he had given us a challenge, he was the only other person save for our master who had defeated us so handily. We swore to slay him in honor of his strength over the years. Unfortunately, he always wished to seek some purpose though, to fight for something other than himself. He wanted more than to 'live', as he used to phrase it."

Udyr snorted, shaking his head, "What ignorance. Then he started listening to _you_. You, with all your speeches, and all of your talking and all of your passion for vermin that deserved to die. All of that, and the ineffectiveness that resulted from it. The lone fact that you tried to move worms to action is completely laughable. We do not know how it moved him. Because of you, he set himself aflame. Because of you and your stupidity, he has lost his eyes. What now can the greatest student of the Shojin monastery offer us when he cannot see his nose? Where is the challenge?"

Irelia bowed her head, her shoulders quaked with anger. "...That's it? That's why we're fighting? For such a stupidly thought out reason like that?!"

Udyr raised an eyebrow as translucent vermillion blades started to circle Irelia. Over twenty blades now spread out from her, crackling with vermillion energy, and all of them were pointed at Udyr.

"You dense _pig_. Do you know what I have given up? What I have lost?"

"No." Udyr snorted, waving her off, "Nor do we care. You use your strength to help these fools to no avail and you wounded Lee. We will not forgive you."

"Forgive me? Forgive me?!" Irelia roared at him, her physical blades shot towards the beast man.

Instead of piercing Udyr, he managed to catch all four blades with a single swift grab of his hand and threw them back at Irelia. Instead of impaling her, they stopped in midair and returned to her side complacently.

"You selfish, heartless scumof man! You are mad at _me_? You want to kill _me _because of what Master Lee chose to do?! I did not influence his choice! He chose to do what he did! It is only because of his sacrifice that we were granted another chance!"

Udyr shrugged his shoulders, his condescending tone thick in his speech, "A chance you should not have had. Your people lost, the strong won. That is life, that is how life works and you must accept such conditions and overcome them rather than trying to circumvent them like a child."

Irelia's eye twitched once out of sheer anger. She suddenly disappeared from view. The beats man could barely keep up with how quickly she was moving. His only choice now was to catch her and launch a counterattack. He readied himself as she moved to strike him. He would strike first. His fist tore forward, aimed where her diaphragm should have been. His knuckles met only steel, as her sword reformed itself and blocked his strike. The sound of flesh hitting metal crisped the night air.

Udyr could see it in her eyes, burning with such anger at him. This fight was going to come to a close, and quickly. He was going to strike down the very daughter of the legendary Master Lito himself. It mattered not, she was weaker. She would fall, and then Lee's eyes, his pain, would be avenged.

* * *

A door to a bedroom was ajar. From within the darkness, Karma stared out of the room. It was strange to have Irelia gone for so long. If she was not training, then her walks lasted twenty minutes, maybe thirty minutes at most. She was punctual with what she did. The Duchess anxiously balled her hands into fists, resting them on her lap. There was nothing she could think of that could help Irelia. How had they managed to let things get this bad? How had they managed to let it get this bad?

The Duchess silently waited in the dark, knowing that there was almost nothing that could be done to deter, or help, her friend. She would do her best to guide her, as she always did, but she was not sure what tomorrow would bring. Win or lose, they would lose her.

In the next room over, the Starchild lay in bed. She had not slept a single wink, similar thoughts coursing through her head.

* * *

Shen stood in the darkened hallway, barely lit by the moonlight that shone through the window. His eyes were closed, if one were ignorant they would think him asleep. Thunderous footsteps made him open his eyes. He casually looked in the direction of the noise, and saw a bloodied beast man storm towards him with a young Ionian woman bleeding in his arms. At least she was bandaged, as poorly done as it was, to help stem the flow of blood. Meanwhile four blades were poking and prodding Udyr, eliciting superficial wounds amongst the other deep wounds that covered his body.

"Stay here, Eye of Twilight. We shall return momentarily."

"You slayed her then?"

The beast man stopped. He let out another growl, "No. She defeated us. The only reason we live is because she spared us."

"Ah." Shen's monotonous voice droned on, "Humor me: why is she unconscious if you were victorious?"

"She will not fight tomorrow. We have made sure of it."

"Who then will fight in her place?"

Udyr glared at Shen, "We shall. Find where her Summoner is-"

"We already know."

"Good," Udyr grunted. "We will be back momentarily."

"What of your vengeance?"

"None to be had."

Shen watched the beast man rumble away. He spoke to the shadows near him, "Does that answer suffice, Akali?"

The green ninja slinked out of the shadows. She nodded in response.

"She will not fight tomorrow. Ionia will win, and some of her burden will be relieved," Shen stated. He then looked over at Akali and commanded, "Awaken Guardsman Bob. We have some changes to the tactics we had intended. I will rouse and speak with the others. Kennen, go with her."

The yordle dropped down from the ceiling and took off running, becoming a ball of pure energy, "See you there Akali! Whoo ha!"

The two ninjas disappeared, leaving Shen alone in the hallway. As soon as they were out of sight, Shen disappeared as well. By the time Udyr had come back in the hallway, the ninja was standing there, as if he had not moved in the first place. Not even the dust at his feet seemed disturbed.

* * *

_10 days after Ionia vs Noxus Rematch._

A young man ran out of Irelia's room, dressed in the crimson armor of the Ionian guard. He paused once the door clicked close behind him. He was half smiling half completely confused as to what happened. Originally, he did not want to risk her wrath for withholding her possession for as long as he did, despite his good reason to do so.

His complex plan was to leave it tied to her door knob when a large, burly man grabbed him by the nape of his and threw him to the ground. The young guard could barely figure out what was going on as the beast of a man yelled at him for being, apparently, a completely inefficient and very stupid assassin. He eventually realized it was Udyr, for forced him to speak with Irelia in person about the fact that he had her pouch.

The young man wondered how things could get worse. Truthfully? He managed to see the always serious Captain Lito smile, hugged him, invite him to have dinner with her, and got away with only having to run two laps around the entire Placidium. All...of...the... The thought just clicked in his head. True, it was not city sized, but it was still essentially stronghold that could house several thousand people within its walls without the issue of overcrowding. He groaned and started running, his armor clanking noisily. At least he had until six thirty in the evening to finish these two laps.

Besides, it could have been worse. He could have gone with his first gut feeling and spelled out Zebos instead of Zelos.

'_Lucky you, Himura. Lucky, lucky, lucky you_,' he thought to himself.

In her room, Irelia cradled the repaired talisman. She caressed the wood, ignoring the hairline fractures in it. She did not notice the green shadow that seemed to hang from her windowsill, she was too focused on the object before her. It was repaired. It was actually repaired. She stared at the talisman for what seemed to be like years, until she spoke. Her voice cracked with emotion, her emerald eyes flooded with tears, "Hey Zelly. I'm sorry it's been awhile since we've spoken, but a lot has happened."

She let out a sigh and shook her head, "To think...that such a crass, brutish, pig headed, annoying, muscle bound... Ha ha ha, sorry sorry, getting off topic. I...I didn't participate in the match, Zelos. Udyr did. In my place. You probably know him better as the beast man of Ionia, the one who used to pick off travelers when they traveled to his part of the forests in the northeastern reaches. He made sure he took my place, and did he ever. He tore them apart. I almost felt bad for them. But to see Kat's face? I don't think I'll ever see that expression again. I admit...I didn't understand at first. I didn't understand why they were all so concerned about me, but I understand now. I am not the only one needed, there are others who will take my place, who are willing to do what is needed. I should have realized that with Lee Sin's sacrifice, but I was just too stubborn to acknowledge it. Too stubborn, or...too prideful. Too hurt."

Irelia let out an abrupt fit of laughter, "I still can't believe I didn't see it. It took all of his questioning, his prodding until I finally realize what Karma and Soraka were so concerned about. I...I almost forgot that I'm human. I almost forgot that. I'm not going to limit myself, but I'll remember that I'm not alone. I'm really not. I have Karma, I have Soraka, I have Master Yi, I even have the Kinkou supporting me, surprisingly I see Akali now and then and now I have...Ex-excuse me, I'm sorry I'm crying, Zelly, I'm just, just overwhelmed. I'm not sad, I'm just overwhelmed at the moment. Don't worry, I'll get over it soon. I already apologized to Karma, Soraka, and to Master Yi, which means I need to ask...are you angry at me?"

She pressed the charm to her chest, as if she wanted the wooden talisman to hug her, "I...I protected Ionia, as best as I could. I really did. I was successful. I may not have gotten the Southern provinces back, but they have been returned. Yet truthfully...That's not what I'm asking if you're angry at me for. That's not what I realized. I...I should never have doubted you, Zelos. You kept your promise: You never left."

Irelia's shoulder shook a bit before she continued,

"You never left me in your heart. I blamed you for leaving me when you did, then I blamed the Noxians for taking you away from me. I blamed them, and I was so angry and I was so hurt. It took a long time, but I want to say I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that I broke my own promise. I did not mean to have you leave me, I really didn't mean to hurt you. I know my mistake now, and you are in my heart once more. I abandoned you for a while, but I still remember your warmth."

Irelia raised the charm to her face, she placed a soft kiss atop of the wooden charm where one would presume a man's forehead would be, "I will look to the stars once more, every night. I will continue praying for your return. Ionia is safe now. I can wait for as long as I need to. Whether it's another nine years, nine hundred years, nine million years it does not matter. I will pray. I will pray and I hope. I do so because you have never broken a promise. I know you will come back to me, in this life or the next."

She drew the charm away and let out a mischievous laugh, "But first thing's first, you and I? I am going to ask the League to give me a much stronger string, hopefully enchanted for extra durability. I'm not losing you again."

Irelia slipped the talisman back into the pouch, her cold eyes now shimmering with sparks of warmth. She was about to leave when she heard something thump on her desk. She turned around, and saw rolls of paper stacked upon one another, with an assortment of paints and paintbrushes resting next to it. She rolled her eyes, muttering aloud, "Akali, I haven't painted in years. Haven't had the time. I need to train, to make sure..."

She stopped. She put a finger to her chin, "...Ionia's safe now. I don't need to train as hard as I-"

Her body shuddered. Irelia nearly fell to her knees, her sword flitting to her side. She stood back up on her own. "And Soraka and Karma are going to want me to go through therapy. I have been neglecting it..."

Irelia walked back over to the desk, and looked at the various tools. "Do you have a pen and ink? I would not m-"

A pen and a bottle of ink appeared in front of her.

To anyone who was not used to such a thing, to detect the ninja's movements was nothing short of impossible. Irelia picked up the pen and started to play with it. "I feel like I'm going to be a bit rusty." The young Ionian woman smiled, "I suppose I have some training to do, hm?"

The green shadow that seemed to hang from the windowsill promptly disappeared.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_10 months later_ - _11 months prior to present day_

Another League match scheduled for Ionia. Irelia read the schedule and saw it was Ionia versus Demacia. It was a friendly sparring match, and it truthfully did not warrant her presence. Today, she had other things to do, such as paperwork.

"The joys of bureaucracy..."

She was gathering her papers when a gentle voice called out from behind her, "Irelia?"

"Yes, Duchess?"

Karma tapped the young Ionian's shoulder, "Are you going to-"

"I am not going to fight today."

"Good," the Duchess affirmed. "Try your best to relax. If you do not finish with the papers, do not worry. I will take care of them. I do not want to hear you yelling about blue triplicate forms when form A-29b-g is needed."

"That only happened once..." Irelia grumbled.

Karma smiled at her friend, "It is alright. I dislike form A-29b-g myself." The Duchess bowed to Irelia, "Take care, Irelia. Today, you can relax."

Karma walked away, leaving Irelia alone in the lobby of Ionian quarters at the Institute. Irelia's sword hummed, tapping at the metal plates of her crimson ceremonial armor. Each tap made a light ring echo. "I suppose I can dress in something a bit more comfortable..." She looked towards the window, seeing it was a bright and sunny day.

"And Fall will be here soon...Might as well."

Half an hour later, Irelia was walking the forests outside the Institute. Instead of wearing her armor, she wore a dark red kimono. Her bare feet were slipped into comfortable, traditional sandals. Her sword flew at her side as always, except it was floating sideways on a horizontal plane. It was carrying for her various paints, inks and brushes, as well as a folder stacked with the legal work she needed to do as well as several sheets of hot pressed paper as well as a thick plank of wood on which she could paint on. Amongst all these items a leather pouch snugly and securely rested.

It was a warm day, like she expected. Although truthfully, it did not matter to her. It was hard for her these days to sense hot and cold, and not from just fighting in the League. She had steadily become number to such sensations every year for the past decade, and it was only in the recent months that this phenomenon had stemmed and stopped.

She made her way down a dirt path, knowing where she was walking to. Eventually, she came upon her destination: an ancient oak tree that overlooked a lake. Because it was Fall, the trees all around her were a carnival of colors.

Irelia made her way over to the oak tree and carefully slid down the trunk into a sitting position. She lifted her feet out of her sandals, and propped the wooden board and paper on her knees.. Her sword hummed as she set herself up, and decided that bureaucracy can wait for a bit. She felt like painting.

Irelia became lost in her painting, not realizing that the hours flew by or that she was singing to herself. As she neared completion, she suddenly sensed a foreign presence. She did not recognize it. It was as if it were trying to stalk her. Nothing felt hostile about the being though, which was most confusing to her.

Then a bodiless voice whispered in her head. It was not a true whisper, it was more...feelings, that were not as abstract. They were asking why they were here, who the Ionian was and why she was here, and if she was able to face the woman now. She wanted to run, but she could not make up her mind.

Irelia did not show any sign of her noticing. She continued to paint as if she had not heard the voice. She recognized it. Irelia had not heard that voice in nearly a decade. Although the thoughts were more coherent than that last time they were still confused. Unsure.

The voice settled on coming over to see what Irelia was painting. Just a peek, maybe she can avoid a direct confrontation. She needed more time before she could directly confront an Ionian.

Irelia decided then and there that they were going to meet face to face. Irelia's sword split apart into four blades, her paints properly covered and capped as she finished her final brush strokes. One of the blades quietly floated away and in the direction of the voice.

"If you wish to speak to me you only need to come into view. I almost skewered you."

Irelia could feel the person look at her blade and instinctively react to it.

The voice prepared to defend itself, trying to figure out what its next plan of action was. She was unsure how she was supposed to fight a user-less sword. It was strange, to hear these thoughts in the tone of a woman, but it only cemented Irelia's assumption as to who this person was.

Irelia's blade flew back to her side and rejoined the rest of her sword. The presence stepped out from the woods behind her. Irelia could sense anxiousness, paranoia, and a trained alertness seen only in soldiers.

When Irelia turned around, she locked eyes with the person before her. Her emerald eyes examined the familiar amber eyes belonging to a white haired woman, decorated in the Noxian armor remnants. Her face had a scar on her left cheek, her left thigh with a few more scars, she presumed more scars were hidden under her clothing. Then she saw the source of the voice: a colossal broken blade. As black as the darkest obsidian with one complete rune etched into it followed another rune that was was incomplete due to the broken blade. Its point forked at the top, showing the cracks in its body.

After all this time, it was her, the Butcher of Noxus. It was Riven. Irelia recognized the voice of the weapon. It had been some time, but not many weapons spoke to her like Riven's had all those years ago. In her experience, few weapons had thoughts beyond their basic instinct. The better question now was why she was at the Institute of War. Was she seeking her old life back?  
Irelia placed her painting down to one side, slipped her feet back into her sandals, and stood up.

"Now then..."

Upon standing, she saw the the most telling feature of this woman: her amber eyes. Irelia had seen them twice before. Once they were hollowed, dead things seeking to make others like it, then scared and frightened. Now? They were unsure. They had tones of despair, sadness, and confusion, but the sparks if a great fighter and her conviction flickered into view. She was scared, unsure, but still willing to press on. Her eyes and her sword together showed Irelia who she was now.

Irelia was not quite sure how this came to be, or who Riven would strive to become, but to see her like this and not the Butcher? Maybe she could hope a bit. There was only one way to find out though, and the only way this could be started was by taking the first small step.

And so, she did.

"To whom do I speak to?

* * *

_Roughly 2 weeks later_

Irelia was making her way back to the Ionian quarters. Her sword bobbed at her side as she walked, humming with a sort of tired contentment. Riven had missed their lunch. Irelia rushed her League match and went to find the exile. Their discussion was enlightening to say the least. Irelia smiled, she also found out that Riven had a surprisingly decent singing voice. Her tone was amazing for someone who apparently only killed their entire life.

The moment she opened the door to her room, Irelia's thoughts were interrupted by a familiar, gentle yet operatic voice,

"Irelia? Are you well?"

"Yes, I am," she replied softly. "Why do you ask?"

Soraka walked in front of Irelia and leaned over. She pulled away some stray hairs away from Irelia's face and pressed her lips against Irelia's forehead. "Hm... You're not sick, no fever... What is wrong, Irelia?"

"Wrong? Nothing is wrong."

Concerned features were prevalent on Soraka's face as she replied, "Your spirit seems to be weighed with a bit of melancholy, you are becoming a bit more absent minded with your scheduling and have missed a League match as well as dinner. Also, it is nearly nine at night and I have not seen you since breakfast where you were somewhat more chipper. Now? Now you speak as though you yelled too much. What is wrong?"

Irelia shook her head, her voice returned to its normal strength, "Nothing, Soraka. You are worrying too much. I was supposed to meet with a friend for lunch, but when she did not show, I was concerned. My presence was not required in the League match so I prepared the rest of the bureaucratic nonsense for tomorrow's meeting, went out for a run and some training, then I found her and spoke with her. After that I went to do some more training and now I'm back. Really, it is no concern."

"Her?" Soraka raised an eyebrow, "Who is her?"

"The new champion, Nevir," Irelia started. "I-"

"Nevir?" Soraka incredulous glare stopped Irelia before she could get another word out.

"Nevir, the fisher from Zaun. She joined the League because...ah..."

Soraka crossed her arms, her incredulous demeanor becoming more and more prominent.

"...You don't believe me, do you?"

"Not for a moment. You are a wonderful person, a terrific swordswoman, an amazing orator, but you are a terrible liar. Who is she, or he?"

Irelia sighed, "It's...Riven. Riven the Exile."

"...What?"

The two women stared at each for some time. Soraka motioned to Irelia to follow her. The young woman did so, until they were outdoors and under the night sky. The Starchild then asked with a gentle tone, "I have to know, did you really think I would be fooled by the name?"

"No."

"Were you?"

"Absolutely not."

"Why then do you speak to her? Why do you take the time to socialize with her?" Soraka raised an eyebrow, "Do you still harbor that...anger? You did not call her the Butcher, what does this mean?" She took Irelia's hand into her own in a comforting manner, waiting for the woman's response.

Irelia let out another sigh and rubbed the back of her head awkwardly with her free hand. "I'm...not angry at _her_anymore. The Butcher...I can't forgive...I really can't, but her? She's 's not the Butcher anymore. She's not the monster back in Ionia, she really isn't."

"What do you mean?"

"She's a good person now, Soraka. She's actually a good person now. She..." Irelia tried finding the words to best explain herself. "Her eyes, they're alive. She wants more from life, she wants to do things, she doesn't...pft...how to say this..."

She stared Soraka dead in her eyes, Irelia's emerald eyes shimmering, "She doesn't enjoy killing. Riven doesn't find joy in it, she doesn't kill for anything else other than when it is needed. That's the only time she harms, the only time she kills. She's different now. I think...I think she deserves this chance, Soraka. She can be so much more, she can be herself! She has the choice, to be what she wants to be. I just...Maybe..."

Irelia swallowed, "Maybe...something did come out of the war, maybe something worthwhile was created because of the war."

"Irelia..."

The woman let out an awkward, sad laugh, "It's just, nothing good came from it. All of it was taken, and taken, and taken. Things were made necessary, but nothing good came from it. Nothing good came from so much death, so much pain and so much agony. Is it selfish of me to think that someone can change and become a better person, that they can be something greater than what they were before? And if they can, they deserve the chance?"

"Irelia...You know that she has a match tomorrow, against Ionia? Against Karma, Akali and Udyr. We were unsure how to tell you. Akali said it was best if the match was had, victory was achieved, and then we told you to soften the blow. The matter of fact is that Riven is aiding the Noxians and Zaunites. She is dubbed and listed as Riven, the Butcher of Noxus. Are you sure this is wise of you?"

"It must be either a mistake or someone is trying implicate her or manipulate her or something. I am not sure, I am really not. But I know it is not of her own accord."

"Is she aware of her listing?"

"I don't know." Irelia shook her head, "She did not bring the subject of a League match, but...I trust her, Soraka. Is that strange, despite such evidence? I trust her. She is not that person she used to be, not that monster. She is more than that now. Am I wrong to think so?"

Soraka was at a loss for words. It was not the Will of the Blades before her now, it was not Captain Lito of the Guard, it was Irelia. What a strange sight. She had only seen this woman in small bursts in the past months. Before the rematch, she was completely absent.  
Whether it was as friend or foe, Soraka knew better than to advise on either side. "Irelia...If you think this is the best path, then I trust in your judgement, and I will support you. I cannot say yes or no in this case though. I will have to watch the match tomorrow to gain a better understanding of the situation."

"Alright, Soraka. Let's see what tomorrow brings." Irelia released Soraka's hand and started to walk away, "I will go for one last run before I-"

"I know you will be busy in a few scant hours with that meeting. You should sleep now if you do not wish to get agitated with them," the Starchild replied. "The Ionian-Noxian people do appreciate you representing them on their behalf. They will need your words tomorrow."

"It'll just be a quick run-"

"Go to sleep already," Soraka laughed. "You have had a long enough day as it is."

"...Yes, I suppose you're right."

Irelia looked up at the night sky, apparently thinking of something. "...The guiding star is bright tonight."

"Yes, it is."

Irelia reached to her fault and at her belt, feeling the pouch. "I have not said my prayers yet. May you join me?"

Soraka was shocked for the second time that night. She had not prayed with Irelia in years, not since the first Ionia versus Noxus match. How odd, for one person to be able to do this in only two weeks of knowing her? Irelia needed to do this, whether it hurt her or helped her, she needed to confront the person she once blamed for taking away everything from her. She needed to confront these facets of the past, Soraka could see this clearly. If it helped her, if it helped bring back more of Irelia, then she would support it.

"I would love to."

* * *

_Roughly 3 months later_

The Lunar Festival had come and gone. Irelia was in Ionia, along with all the other Ionians celebrating the festival. Once it had finished, however, they were expected to return to the League within a few days.

However, they of course, had other matters to take care of as well.

Irelia smoothed her hair back, her sword bobbed behind her. Karma and Soraka stepped in stride with her. She was in a bit of a bad mood, mostly because of the meeting they had just finished. "Stubborn. They are all so stubborn..."

"You cannot blame them, Irelia. Not everyone is like you. Some people will not let go of their grudges," Karma assured. "You just have to talk to them and keep presenting the points."

"I know, Duch...Karma, I know. Pft... So who are we meeting with next?"

Soraka spoke up, "Some of the contractors in the rebuilding efforts. Demacia wishes to donate more in regards to said rebuilding efforts and we will be looking at what has been accomplished in the past month."

"Good, good. After this meeting we'll have time to ourselves, yes?"

"Yes," the two women said in unison.

"I-"

Before any of them could say more, they turned around a corner where some of Irelia's guards patrolled. They looked in Irelia's direction and gave her a quick salute, "Greetings, Captain!"

"Continue your patrols," she commanded. The guards nodded and went back to their work.

The three continued their walk as Irelia said, "I want to ask your opinion in inviting Riven to come to Ionia."

Karma and Soraka looked at one another, slightly confused.

"Pardon?"

"I would like to extend an invitation to Riven to come to Ionia, to help with the rebuilding efforts." Irelia exchanged a quick look with the two women, "I think it would be good to offer her the chance. I had an argument with her, not a fight to the death. No reason to hold a grudge, yes?"

The two women smiled back at Irelia. They walked in silence for a bit more when a guard, out of breath, ran up to them, "Glk...hah..Gree...greetings...Captain!"

"At ease. Private Kenji, I thought I gave you a few days off?"

"You...*wheeze*...did, Captain." He fell to the floor, completely out of breath, "I got here as quickly...as I could. Pfew..." He took a deep breath, composed himself, and saluted Irelia, "Captain, there has been a disturbance. I got here as quickly as I could, I rode all day and night."

Another deep breath in, and Private Kenji continued, "I was outside, helping ploughing the fields, and the sky went dark. When we looked up, there it was! A floating building! A castle in the sky! I thought it was a trick on my eyes when a rock fell and...well, the other reason I am here is to let you know that Private Ryu will not be able to attend duty for a few days. He has a concussion."

Irelia raised an eyebrow, "A castle in the sky?" She looked at Soraka and Karma, "Does that mean anything to either of you?"

"I am afraid not, Captain."

Soraka shook her head, "I do not think I know. What did the building look like?"

Private Kenji shrugged, "Ah, I'm not very sure. All I know is that the land well...landed, and a loud, commanding voice said that we should prepare our allegiance to her."

"Her?"

"It sounded like a woman's voice except...amplified. Strongly amplified. She said that she is our ruler to be, our new Sovereign. She went on about how the Elder council of Ionia will pay for their crimes against her, and those who wish to follow her, will be rewarded. Those who did not, would be crushed. She is the power that is needed to rule Ionia and...well.."

_'Soveriegn?' _Irelia bowed her head and sighed, "Well what?"

"Well...she...asked who was willing to join her or suffer the consequences later. She then...crushed Ryu's house."

"...She crushed his house. What do you mean she crushed his house?"

"I mean, it was there one moment, the next moment...? Poof. Splintered. A big black ball of...stuff just flew out of her house and smashed it in a single blow. No remains of the magical ball, but the house? Obliterated. A few people were terrified, they didn't know what to do. When I got on my horse, I saw her levitate a few houses and the very ground for them, and add them to her own terrain. She was almost...shuffling the architecture around at a whim."

The three women were completely confused.

Kenji finally finished, "After the land...well, up and left, the Kinkou emerged. The Eye of Twilight told me to tell you to ask the council about ah...her name...the name, the name...Ah! Syndra."

"Syndra?" Irelia raised an eyebrow. None of the women knew who Syndra was. She had a feeling that it would only be the beginning of trouble.

* * *

_Roughly two weeks later_

Irelia rubbed her eyes exasperatedly. Her sword whined with an angry pitch. She was fulfilling the roles of Karma, Soraka, and herself. She had sent Karma and Soraka to the Institute for their safety while she figured out what to do with this new self titled Sovereign, Syndra. It had been millenia since Ionia had a Sovereign, and with the pattern that the line of Sovereigns followed, Irelia was slightly worried for the safety of her friends and people.

Every day for the past few weeks, she sent messengers to try and speak with her. They all came back to Irelia within a day or so of being sent, and told her that Syndra refused audience with them, saying she will not speak to the lapdogs of the Elders.

This time, however, Shen arrived. He was holding a messenger who was shaking uncontrollably and caked in blood. Irelia's guards rushed the man to the infirmary while she questioned Shen, "What happened? Where is the second messenger?"

"Dead."

Irelia raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"He is dead. We were tracking the floating fortress' trajectory when we saw this man being thrown from several stories in the air. We managed to catch him, and we spoke to him while he was still lucid. Your guard, Private Kenji, was correct in his assertion that she crushed the house. According to this man, Syndra crushed the other messenger into a plate of cloth, flesh, bones and whatever else. He was compressed quickly and efficiently, killed in an instant. She told this still living man to tell the Elders that she will come and she will speak with them in person when she wants to. Not sooner, not later."

Irelia groaned and threw her hands up, "Well that is not ominous! Who else has she killed?"

"No one."

"Pardon?"

"Aside from this man, who admittedly hit the trees first before we caught him, and the other messenger, she has harmed no one else, never mind killed."

"...Will you kill her?"

"No. Life and death are a part of the natural cycle. She is naturally attuned to her powers, and she can see them as she see fits so long as she does not disrupt the balance. She is as much a part of the balance as anything else. She is the yang to the rest of our yin. It is unfortunately not so simple a matter." He shrugged his shoulders, his monotonous voice droning on, " And truthfully? Even if we wanted to, we would not be able to reach her fortress. She is too high up for even me to attempt to leap to. As long as she stays in the sky, she is untouchable."

Irelia sighed and shook her head, "So we have to sit and wait."

"Yes."

"You will give us fair warning, yes?"

"Yes."

The young woman nodded, "I will return to the League as soon as I can then, after assuring this man's health. I undoubtedly have many things to catch up on, including that match against Bilgewater being scheduled in a few weeks. Shen, I have a favor to ask of you."

"Ask."

Irelia looked around, scanning for something, "Do you have a paper, a pen, or-?"

Shen handed to Irelia a paper and a calligraphy brush, dipped in ink already. She knew better than to ask where he had gotten either item from. She quickly painted on it, her strokes quick and efficient, then handed the paper to Shen, "Can you give this to Riven as soon as you can? I wish to see her, I need to talk to her about some issues."

The ninja nodded, "Of course, Irelia. Akali, Kennen, and a dozen more Kinkou members are following the floating land. Rest assured, you will not be caught by surprise."

With that, Shen disappeared. Irelia cracked her knuckles. This Syndra had killed one of her own countrymen and wounded another. From what Irelia inferred, she did so callously and with very little reason.

She looked at her floating sword. She whispered to it, "We must prepare for the worst, right?"

Irelia patted her fauld, feeling the pouch securely in place, "All three of us."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

_Several months later - Present day_

It was early in the morning, dawn had just barely broke. Irelia was already dressed in her ceremonial armor, the Mantle of Decorum and all, and was heading towards the gates of the Placidium. Her sword bobbed next to her, flitting about in a somewhat energetic mood. The gatekeeper opened the large doors for her, and let her exit. She woke up earlier than usual because the Demacian embassy would be coming by the afternoon.

Prince Jarvan IV had insisted on taking the long, traditional route with his embassy. He insisted that he had something for Ionia, and that to give it any less presence than this would be nothing short of a crime. It had to be done traditionally. He was not one for such theatrics, and it was strange he wanted to take such a route, but he must have had his reason for doing so. If that were such the case, then the embassy would most likely take up the whole afternoon and the next few days. Dinners, speeches, discussions, so on and so on.

The last time she met face to face with Jarvan outside of the Fields of Justice, now that she thought about it, was a little less than a year ago over dinner in regards to searching for her brother. She left it up to his discretion. He was always with her, she would not forget that again. However, Ionia and Demacia have tried before, and it bore no fruit. If he was offering, however, why would she refuse? Zelos may be in her heart, but to have him in person once more would be nothing short of a miracle.

She stretched her arms, then her legs, then took off running towards the nearby forestry. Her sword easily kept up with her pace, keeping at a safe distance from her to assure she would not trip on her own weapon. Irelia would only be gone for an hour run, an hour of training, than an hour run back.

* * *

Several ninjas, including the triumvirate, flitted through the trees, a dark shadow covering them. It was not from the forest they were in though, it was from the land that floated above head. It was flying quickly to the direction of the Placidium.

Shen stated his orders, "Kennen, you will come with me to the Placidium. You will reassure the guards and calm them, I will speak with the Council, Akali? You will find and tell Irelia. Tell her that Syndra is coming. The rest of you, prepare for the worst. On my signal you will act."

He looked up, seeing the land move even faster. It was hard to believe that such a large landmass could move as quickly as it did, the ninjas having trouble keeping up with the pace. On the other hand, once someone had had seen a fully engorged Cho'Gath outrun Rammus not much else was hard to disbelieve. One thing that he and any good ninja knew though was that nothing was faster than a ninja, not even light.

Karma was barely decent when a blue ninja appeared in her room, "Duchess Karma. Your presence is required."

Startled, she spun around with fan in hand, pointed at Shen. She tilted her head in confusion, "What is wrong, Shen?"

"Syndra approaches. She will be at the Placidium within the hour."

With a quick nod, Karma started to bundle her hair upwards, "Tell the rest of the council that I will speak in place for them. If she attempts to do anything violent, it will only be one of us who will suffer."

"You will not be alone. Kennen is assuring the guards do not intervene. He will defend you if need be."

Karma shook her head about to protest when Shen continued, "Syndra would have to be foolish to try and fight both the Heart of the Tempest and the Enlightened One. Hopefully it will be enough of a deterrence. The Kinkou will not be allowed to intervene directly unless she tries something foolish."

"I should go alone. She would feel threatened-"

"Kennen will only be by your side unless she decides to act. I will be acting judge and be issuing crowd control alongside him."

"That sounds to be a tad much."

"With all due respect, Duchess, she is able to make a floating piece of land along with a building structure fly at nearly one hundred twenty knots per hour. We do not know how powerful she is, or how willing she is to simply crush you. I am assuring safety."

The Duchess zipped her dress up from behind, "And where is Akali?"

"She is finding Irelia to let her know of the current situation."

"Irelia? She went out to train in the forests."

"Then she will finish her sweep, follow her tracks, and find Irelia in the forest. Where would you like to meet Syndra?"

"The veranda that stretches out from the Council of Elder's room. If she is civil, then we can discuss with the others as quickly as we can. If she is not, then there are the colonnades which can be broken and used to block her path. Less civilians would be involved and-"

A burst of electricity rushed into the room. Kennen knelt before Shen, "I can't convince them Shen! They say we either kill them ourselves or let them fulfill their duty as guards of the Placidium!"

Karma sighed and shook her head, "She will feel threatened. I will not-"

"And she is about to land!"

Shen raised an eyebrow, "...You should have said that first."

"She upped her speed and is heading towards one of the lower rooftops!"

"Which roof?"

"The one with the covered courtyard! Where Irelia usually has the guards doing their morning sparring! About a cohort of men are up there! I'll just rush on back and tell them to leave! She should be here in about ten min-"

A loud, thundering crack could be heard.

"Scratch that! Let's move!"

Shen unceremoniously scooped Karma into his arms, and the three of them disappeared.

* * *

The guards were busy sparring with one another to really notice much. The scaffolding above them provided enough shade, so when a bit more darkness occluded their view they thought nothing of it. It was only when the roof was literally torn off and flung over into the forests that the guards noticed something was wrong.

A large piece of land floated several stories high and crossed the Placidium's walls and fortifications. From this floating island, a small woman could be seen floating downwards. Dark magical spheres encircled her. Her long white hair, that flowed down to her upper thighs, resembled snow and similar albedo. Her forehead bore no attire save for her long mane of hair. Her eyes were a dark violet, the same color that seemed to crackle about her in magical energy. Her clothing was a combination of the same violet and the same black that compromised her spheres. Aside from color choice, her clothing made sure to accentuate her womanly curves, a short cut top that propped her large bust upwards while a short, thin skirt to wrapped around her wide hips. Her thigh high boots ended abruptly at her feet, where a thin, almost stocking-like material, seemed to cover her toes and heels.

She levitated a foot off the floor, slowly the cohort of armed men and women before her. She flicked her hair behind her, sneered at the gathered people and spoke, "None of you are the Council, are you?" When she spoke, her voice seemed to echo and magnify itself with a strange magical energy.

She yelled, stomping her foot in midair, "What are you all still doing standing here?! Bring me the Council!"

The guards responded as they were expected. They grabbed their armaments and pointed it at her. One of them called out, "Who asks?"

"Asks?" She let out a laugh. A twitch of her finger brought the offending man screeching across the courtyard and to her feet, "Your Sovereign demands it! I want to see the Council, now! It is time I took my place!" Syndra looked around, smiling broadly, "Rejoice, fellow Ionians! Your time of oppression by the ignorant Council is at an end!"

The guards tightened the grip on their weapons as the poor man she grabbed attempted to crawl away from her. Syndra sighed, "I suppose if I don't let you up on your feet, you can't get them, can you?"

She crossed her arms as her release on the guard disappeared. He stood up and pointed at the Sovereign angrily, "You cannot command us, nor do you have the authority to treat us in such a way! How dare you-"

Syndra's eyes narrowed, she screamed at the man, "I dare because I am stronger than you! My potential is limitless while all of yours are underwhelmingly realized! Now go, get them, and bring them here! Their time of rule is at an end!"

Her scream made the guard literally fly off his feet. He sailed through the air, smashed against another man, and the sound of bones snapping could be heard. Both men died upon impact, one from a shattered spine, the other from their xiphoid process breaking. This forced the armed men and women to action. Several dozen rushed at Syndra, weapons raised while another dozen aimed longbows at her.

"Those who draw a weapon against me will die."

She slammed her hands together, eighty soldiers suddenly crashed into one another. Violet and black energy sparked from the ball of soldiers, and an eruption of blood could be seen from the literal gravitational squeezing they were experiencing. Bones snapped, armor was sundered, and with only enough time to utter a short scream they were killed. One of her dark spheres hurtled forward and slammed into this amalgamated ball of flesh and steel.

"To scatter the weak is to scatter sand: all too easy."

The corpses were launched with terrifying velocity in a large fan. Any living guard that was touched by the dark sphere was instantly obliterated. Unrecognizable fragments of armor, flesh and bone flew from the lucky few that were killed so quickly. The corpses of their own countrymen were hurtled with such force that it sent them flying into the colonnades, the stone columns cracking from the force of impact.

In less than a minute, over three hundred men and women were dead. Syndra smiled at the rest of the living guards, "Will my playthings run, or will they do as their Sovereign commands and get the Council?"

"Enough of this, Syndra. I am here."

Karma stepped forward. The guards quickly looked at her and cried out, "Duchess! Get away!"

She walked past the corpses, glaring at Syndra the entire time. In both hands she gracefully held a pair of fans, opened and readied for their usage. "Why have you hurt these people?"

"They were questioning me. I am not to be questioned. I am flawless, I am the Sovereign of Ionia."

"I highly doubt that was what happened. What-"

Syndra barked at Karma, "Who are you to interrupt me?!"

"I am Duchess Karma, a member of the Council."

"A Council member!" She clapped her hands energetically, "Excellent! You'll be the first of them to die!"

* * *

In the forests near the Placidium, Irelia was practicing katas. Her sword flew with the movement of her hands and feet, mimicking her strikes as she continued her practice. Akali appeared in front of her, "Irelia, it is-"

That was when a section of the Placidium's rooftop slammed into the ground a few meters away from them, shattering trees and rock alike. Irelia blinked, and looked at Akali. The ninja jerked a thumb at the destroyed architecture, "Syndra."

That was all Irelia needed to hear. She took off running, her sword barely able to keep up with the pace she ran at.

* * *

Karma glared at Syndra, "Tell me why you think I deserve death. I am not much older than you, so therefore I am not the one responsible for what happened. Your training-"

"Training? Training?!" Syndra spat. "It was incarceration! All of you, all of you _pigs_ were limiting me! _Me_! How _dare_you?! I will not be constrained! I will not be dug under the heels of worms that fear my power!"

The Sovereign smiled, "My power is simple! If you deserve to live, I will let you live. If you oppose me, I will kill you! My strength can bring Ionia to unprecedented heights it has never seen before! Instead of all of this backstabbing passivity and all of these lies, we show and are not ashamed of our strength! You are all the same! My 'master' was one of you talking people who thought what _he_ was doing was best for me! He wanted to limit me! He wanted to hinder me! He had to go! With _my _limitless potential, under _my _rule, I can show all of Runeterra the true strength of the Ionian people! No more lies, no more backstabbing, no more words! Just strength! _My_strength!"

Syndra pointed behind her at the floating terrain,

"Do you see that? I had that built from the foundations of my old temple thanks to workers that work for me! If you come inside, you will see the people follow me! They listen to my commands! They listen to what I say, and why? Because I can protect them! I am something that they have never seen before! Their allegiance is able to change so easily from someone so overwhelming and overpowering! You think you are the government fit to serve such spineless worms? People are scared of power, they are scared of what they do not understand, and they will do things to try and quell it! They will try and silence the voice without understanding the foolish consequences! Why should a government of old doddering fools be in place when even they are jealous and fearful what they do not understand? All that is needed to guide these people is power! Power without limit! They may fear me, but they respect me! Power, fear, and respect all go hand in hand! And do not say that they do not! That is the point of punishment! That is the point of law! You do something against the law, you get punished! Really, all I want to do is establish a more organized and more apt ruling system than yours! Yours has failed!"

The Duchess did not skip a beat in her reply, "Yet if anyone disagrees with you, you will simply kill them, yes? There is a very good reason as to why the system of Sovereigns failed in Ionia's past. I have faced tyrants face to face before. This is not the first time nor do you impress me with your theatrics. Calm yourself and let us talk."

Syndra's yell ripped up several tiles from the ground, sending them hurtling towards Karma, "You will _not_! Insult! _Me_!"

Karma calmly stood in place, the tiles seemingly hit a barrier and flew over and around her as she spoke, "What you have said, I would like to make a comment. I have a good friend who also believes in the idea that might makes right, he believes in the idea that the strong will survive, the weak will die, and that is the rule of life. Do you agree with such a sentiment?"

"Yes! Of course! At least you understand that much! It's almost a pity I have to kill you!"

"Then you would not enjoy meeting him. He knows far more than you do. He knows more about life than you do. He too killed his master, but he realized something that you did not: He realized that he was the big fish in the pond, and not the fish in the ocean. To gain true strength, one must know more than the pond they were born in, and seek bigger and better things, no matter how frightening it is. That is why he joined the League, that is why he fights. He wishes to see more than the pond he was born with, he realizes his folly now. That is where his true strength comes from. It is strange, how such subtle differences can differentiate people so much."

Syndra's shoulders quaked with anger, "Frightened? Are you implying that _I_ am frightened? Of what?! There is _nothing_that can compare to me! I now have a whole word to toy with!"

"I am saying that you are looking at the pond, Syndra. The first Sovereign of Ionia may have unified our people and established many of our orders, but that is because he was a special being. The Sovereigns afterwards became more and more corrupt with power, and that there is the flaw of the Sovereign idea: One cannot account for the actions of descendents. One Sovereign or two Sovereign may have been just and wonderful people, but the others that followed were so horrible and so terrible that Ionia fell into a far greater recession than ever seen in its history. With that said..."

Karma sighed and shook her head, "The only thing I can apologize for, is the fact that you were not given a choice. The fact that you were simply hidden away and not told the truth of the matter is what I apologize for, on behalf of the council. We have no reason to fight. I know you are angry, and up to a certain point, you have the right to be. Let us discuss-"

"Shut up."

"That is the true injustice that was done to you, and I underst-"

"I said shut up!"

Syndra motioned at two columns. They were promptly torn out with a simple gesture, magical energy crackling from her. She slammed them towards Karma who did not move.

"Duchess!" The guards called out. They moved forward to try and save her when a blue blur stopped them.

A bolt of lightning seemingly struck Karma, and before the two stone pillars collided she was several feet in front of them. Kennen appeared out of the bolt of lightning next to Karma. This made Syndra squeal in delight, "What is that adorable little thing?!"

Even the hyper Kennen paused and tried processing what she had just said. "...What? Me?"

"Yes! You! You are so cute and small and fluffy! I want you as my pet!"

"I am not a pet!"

"Yes you are. Look at you, a little electric mouse!"

Kennen looked over at Karma and pointed at the Sovereign, "What is wrong with her? Doesn't she know I'm a Yordle?"

"A Yordle? I read about them, but..." Syndra tapped her lips in contemplation, "But I've never seen one! You look so cuddly! You will be my royal pet!"

Kennen looked over at Shen, who was standing in front of the guards, "Shen, can I slap her?"

Without warning, the Yordle was jerked off his feet and sent hurtling towards Syndra, "Come here, pet!"

Kennen exploded into a burst of electricity, roaring towards Syndra. A jolt of lightning lashed out and struck her finger.

"Ow!"

With a casual wave of her hand, she flung him several dozen meters into the air. She started to suckle on her burnt fingertip while Kennen flew. If he had not turned himself into a bolt of lightning, he would have continued flying. The lightning bolt struck a spear that was sticking upwards. Kennen reemerged on the ground, his fur crackling with energy. "Oh do not make me come over there, lady!"

Syndra smugly spoke, "If you are not my pet, then you are dead."

"Shen?"

"Yes."

Before the two could react, Syndra let out a sigh, "Bored now, too much talking."

She stretched her hands out and slammed them downwards. A dark sphere flew above one of the various sections of the Placidium and tore through it. The structure cracked then promptly collapsed on itself and its multiple layers. Screams of pain ripped through the air. Syndra randomly pointed from place to place and sent out more dark orbs, ripping and tearing through the Placidium on a whim, "If I were you, I'd be more concerned about those people's welfare rather than me, yes? The longer you try and stop me, the more people will die."

Karma's eyes narrowed. She started to fan herself quicker than usual as she walked towards Syndra.

Shen looked at Kennen, and then at Akali who appeared behind him as he commanded, "Kennen, alert the Kinkou to start evacuating maneuvers and aid them. Akali, get these guards out of here and secure this building, then you will help guide people out the front gates. I will take care of the council. Minimizing casualties are needed more than a confrontation. Duchess, you are coming with me."

"No. I am going to deal with-"

Syndra looked over at Karma a smile on her face, "Run plaything, run." She pointed at Karma, and an entire barrage of dark spheres rocketed at her.

Several guards ran out in front of the Duchess and took the initial brunt of the blow while Akali started herding the rest away. Shen stood in front of the Duchess, the blood of their countrymen on him and on her. He barely seemed phased, since the guards had managed to block most of the initial damage.

Karma knelt down, fanning the dead and wounded guards. A healing wind softly flowed from her fans. "You should not have-"

"It's our d-duty, Duchess. W-we will die for you, and for the Capt..." He coughed out a thick pool of blood, gasping for air.

"Captain...?" Karma had not sensed Irelia until now. She looked behind her at the entranceway to the courtyard.

Irelia stood there, looking at the mess of mangled bodies. She walked out into the open, her eyes seemingly glazed over. No anger, no fear, no emotion in them. Her sword hummed and crackled with vermillion energy.

A hand gripped her ankle, accompanied by a soft voice, "C-Capt...I'm...I fail...ed..."

Irelia looked down at the woman who was crawling towards her. "Samara, you have done well. You have all done well. At ease, soldier."

The Captain of the Ionian guard walked over to the soldier, who was missing her lower half. Irelia rested her hand on her forehead, and waited for the life of the woman to ebb and drift towards the heavens above.

Syndra snorted, "Are you a member of the-"

"Shut up."

Syndra blinked, her voice incredulous, 'Ex-cuse me? Did you just-"

"I said shut up."

Irelia stood up, and looked at Shen, "Find Soraka, have her heal the wounded, get my men out of here. Akali, you will not touch her. She is mine. Karma, ensure the safety of the others, please."

"Irelia-"

"I am doing my duty. You do yours," Irelia calmly stated. She looked over and pointed at Syndra, "You are dead."

The Sovereign raised an eyebrow and burst out in a fit of hyena laughter, "Me? Dead?! Please! As if you can think of harming the Sover-"

"I do not care who you are," Irelia shook her head. Her lifeless, emerald eyes staring at Syndra the whole time, "The only reason I know your name is because I was told it. You do not deserve a name. These men and women did: Samara, Xiu, Hiksugen, Chizuru, Hokgin, Damajkin, Seneto, Kaibu, Rei-"

"Get to the point, _please_. You're talking way too much. Tell you what, if you surrender now, I'll let you live. Honestly, you are nothing to me alive or dead so if you want to live, shut it."

"Kinkou. Evacuate the Placidium. Assure others live. Find Soraka, perhaps something can be done. Karma, heal the wounded and look after them."

The Kinkou knew better than to argue with Irelia now. Karma looked at the injured, but still living guards. As quickly as she could spot them, they disappeared. She could see them being gathered in the corridor just past the entrance. She could stay and help Irelia, or help those who needed it more. Irelia would not forgive her if Karma did not let the Captain tend to her duty, as she would tend to her own.

Karma walked towards the entrance to the courtyard, which made Syndra yell at her, "Where do you think you're going?! You are staying, council member! You deserve d-"

"I am going to kill you." Irelia interrupted. Her voice was flat, compeltely devoid of emotion and tone. It was eerie even for Shen to hear, a voice no one had heard in nearly a decade. "When I close the distance, I am going to choke you. You will die a death befitting a rabid dog."

Syndra's eyes sharpened. "I am untouchable. I am your Sovereign, you are just a jealous fool. Die, fool."

One of the stone columns were torn out of the ground and flung at Irelia. Her sword flicked over to the middle of it, and cleanly bisected it. A burst of vermillion energy assured it was cut down the middle. the two halves flew past Irelia who continued to glare at the Sovereign.

In an act of spontaneity, which made her body language unreadable, Irelia burst forward at Syndra at breakneck speed, her sword keeping pace with her easily. In the split of a moment, Irelia managed to almost close the distance between her and her opponent who floated with her arms crossed and the most smug look on her face.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Irelia's sword split apart into four separate blades while Irelia herself stretched her hands out and aimed at the Sovereign's throat, mere inches away from her target. She, unfortunately, found herself and her blades stopped short of her opponent. Irelia was straining against the force that kept her away from Syndra, it was as if she were being slightly levitated into the air to assure no traction.

"Ah ah ah," Syndra shook a mocking finger at Irelia. "Peasants don't get to touch the Sovereign. You will learn your place."

A twitch of Syndra's finger slammed Irelia into the ground, crunching her armor into her flesh. The young woman could not help but cough out a mist of blood from the impact. She could feel an invisible force push down on top of her while her blades refused to budge midair.

The Sovereign moved away from Irelia, to create distance between the two combatants, while the young woman struggled to her knees in her attempt to stand once more.

"Now now, supplication won't get you any mercy..." She giggled and waved dismissively at Irelia, "Alright, maybe it...will...?"

Syndra's violet eyes locked with Irelia's emerald eyes. Syndra's beautiful face drew back into an ugly scowl, "What's with that look? Who do you think are?"

Irelia stood back up, her emotionless eyes staring into the depths of Syndra's soul.

"Stop _staring_ at me like _that_!"

A sudden wave of pressure tore off the metal plates on Irelia's fauld, embedding it into the ground. Along with the belt, a leather bag clattered to the ground. Irelia's eyes flicked quickly to it, to assure its safety, then focused back on Syndra. Her blades came to life once more and flew at Syndra. They had split formation in an attempt to attack the Sovereign from different angles.

The Sovereign, however, flew upwards and dodged the initial strike. While doing this, several corpses flew in front of her to create a literal meat shield. Before Irelia's blades could pierce her or the bodies of her countrymen and women, they stopped short once more.

A burst of laughter emitted from Syndra as she tossed the corpses with frightening force at Irelia, "What use are the dead?! The dead are dead! They are worth nothing if they cannot serve me!"

Irelia barely managed to dodge the corpses that were thrown at her, she still felt an invisible weight that pressed on her entire body, as if she were giving Cho'Gath a piggy back. Upon impact, each cadaver exploded from the sheer force they were thrown with.

"Honestly, why do you keep fighting? Do I really have to put forth an actual effort?"

Irelia's response was her hurtling her blades at Syndra once more. A stone column was torn from its foundation and used to parry the blades with ridiculous speed. Syndra successfully blocked all four blades, smirking all the while. She did not expect for the hundreds of swords, spears, arrows, anything that resembled a metal weapon to fly at her. She did not seem concerned as the stone column was spun around her, deflecting almost every single weapon thrown at her.

"It's all very fut-"

Syndra let out a gasp. A sword had managed to slice her thigh cleanly open, half a centimeter deep but several centimeters long. A torrent of blood poured forth. She clutched her leg and screamed in pain, "Gah!"

Her scream managed to literally crush anything that was close to her proximity flying. All of the weapons that Irelia had used were made useless as the weapons became twisted and contorted, breaking into unusable shapes. They clattered lifelessly to the floor, save for her own blades which floated back to Irelia's side.

"How dare you?!"

Irelia did not verbally reply, and simply stared at the Sovereign with those same eyes.

"Say something, worm!"

No response.

"Fine! Then die quietly!"

Irelia was dragged towards Syndra, several meters in the air, and could not fight against it to the best of her ability. Syndra lifted a balled fist and pushed her palm towards Irelia's blades which were about to intervene. The force of the push sent them pinwheeling into the Placidium itself, easily tearing through the walls and ground.

"Now you have _nothing_ to fight me with. What are y-"

A lob of bloodied spit hit between Syndra's eyes. She glared at Irelia for a moment or two when the young woman was sent rocketing to the ground. Irelia hit the tiled floor so hard that the stone tiles cracked. Irelia did not have time to breath when she was catapulted into one stone column, then into another, and then into another. This process repeated itself for an entire minute, Irelia was essentially being tossed around like a ragdoll.

Eventually, Irelia was slammed into a corner of the courtyard while Syndra landed on the ground. The dark spheres that danced about Syndra started to multiply in number. More than thirty of these spheres were now at her command, while the flying terrain in the backdrop of the battle started to falter.

A twitch of the Sovereign's finger sent the entire payload of these dark energy spheres thundering at Irelia in rapid succession. The force they struck with annihilated the corner and anything that was residing in that corner. Stone could be seen crushed into a chalky dust from the attack.

Syndra smoothed her hair back and sighed, "Can't believe she made me put effort into this. Now then..." She looked around and pouted her lower lip, "So...where should I start?"

"You're not starting anywhere!"

Syndra cast a bored look at the entrance. Four armed guards stood there. They must have not been here before, or maybe they were? She could not bother to remember. She watched them passively while one of them barked orders,

"Kenji, get to the Captain! Ryu, Shin, with me!"

The one named Kenj raced over to the corner Irelia was in while the three others advanced towards Syndra.

A haughty laugh escaped her lips, "A legion couldn't stop me! What chance do _you_ have?"

"Shut up!" The guard yelled, "You're not hurting the Captain anymore! Not with us here!"

She palmed her face, "Wow, I'm speaking to idiots. Why fight a losing battle for her, when you can join me and live? She is not worth-"

"I said shut up you gods damned power hungry jumped up twat!" The guard yelled once more. "She's not worth it?! _You_ are worth _nothing_! You're not worthy to even lick her boots never mind look at her! She saved Ionia from the Noxian invasion! She trained with us, she grew up with us, she is family to us! She is our friend and our superior! She's lost more than you've ever had! She deserves more than a spoiled, egotistical bi-"

The guard's neck suddenly tightened. His breastplate crunched into his throat as it started to suffocate him, "You _dare_ talk to your sovereign like that?"

The guard gurgled feebly while his two comrades rushed at her.

"You are all going to d-"

A vermillion blade, forged from chi energy, raced at Syndra's head. With a simple thought, a chunk of a stone column flew up with the intention to defend herself with. Instead of the expected resistance, the blade flew through as if its obstacle were inexistent, slicing cleanly through. The vermillion blade continued on its trajectory that was Syndra's face.

Out of reaction more than anything else, the Sovereign jerked her head backwards while attempting to float away. The blade then sharply changed direction and cut cleanly into her forehead, tearing away a chunk of skin down the center of her head.

"Muh...My face.." Syndra reached up at the blood that billowed from the wound. She brought her fingers into view at the slick, red liquid that now stained her hand. She screaming in pain, "Aaaaah! Y-you cut my face? You dare cut my face?!"

Syndra clutched her face, reeling in pain from the wound. The floating terrain faltered once more.

While the Sovereign flailed about, the guards turned to the direction the blade had flown from and cried out in unison, "Captain!" The guard who was choking could feel the pressure relieve itself around his neck as the metal straightened itself out.

"Kenji, Himura, Ryu, Shin. Get out of here. Aid the Kinkou in evacuating, that is a direct order." Irelia's voice calmly commanded.

"But Capt-"

They fell silent the moment they saw her.

Irelia walked out of the rubble, her sword reformed and crackling with vermillion energy as it led her way. Three more of the vermillion energy blades floated above her head, it was her Transcendent Blades technique. Her armor was severely dented, her Mantle of Decorum bent out of shape, but if one inspected her sword they would see many scuffs on it. Her head was twisted slightly out of place, her right shoulder was dislocated along with her collarbone being obviously broken, her left forearm was turned backwards and her left foot faced backwards. Gashes littered her arms and chest, as well as a few lacerations on her face which all flowed with blood. She did not look like she should be alive never mind fighting.

She snapped her head back into place, jerked her shoulder upwards and promptly relocated it. Bones popped which acknowledged her success. With a quick rotation to test its range, she reached over to her left arm and snapped that back into place. She pressed her foot on the ground hard, and twisted counterclockwise. She had done all this without making a sound. The dents in her armor smoothed and straightened themselves out, along with the Mantle, which allowed her to breathe a little easier.

Himura regained both the ability to breath and his senses, ran over to where Irelia's fauld plates were. He reached to the belt, untied the leather pouch and ran it back over to Irelia. He pressed it into her hand as he spoke, "You're not in any condition to fight, Captain. We're staying-"

"No. You're not. Only one more is dying today." Irelia pointed directly at the still flailing Syndra, "Her."

"You...You gods damned zombie. What are you? What in the hells are you?! You're supposed to be dead!"

Irelia quietly and calmly affixed the leather bag around her neck. She looked behind her, "Shen, assure that they aid you and the others. Protect them."

With that, she walked towards the Sovereign. With every step she took, the vermillion blades multiplied. First they were three, then six, then twelve, then twenty four, then forty eight. They fanned out behind her, akin to wings save for the fact that they were all pointed and aimed at Syndra.

Several columns, as well as some of the trees that was planted there to help liven the rooftop, were ripped out simultaneously which effectively tore down an entire section of the building. These stone columns and trees were flung at Irelia while Syndra fired another barrage of dark spheres.

The guards disappeared in a blue blur despite any intention they may have had, while Irelia walked towards certain death.

In a random act of spontaneity, Irelia ran and slid underneath the first column to avoid it. Upon seeing the first hail of dark spheres, her sword clashed with them. It crackled with vermillion energy, and instead of being crushed by the gravitational fields they emitted, it absorbed them. Blood flowed from Irelia's nose and ears upon the absorption of the energy, but she did not let it deter her. The next stone column that crashed towards her, she vaulted over. This was quickly followed by a third one, which she should not have evaded if it were not for her sword. Her sword flew under her and gave her solid ground from which she could push off of. She leaped over the third column and landed atop the fourth one that spun towards her.

She ran along it without losing momentum, slid underneath the fifth column which collided with the one she was standing on which made her leap off of it and landed onto a thin tree. She slid down the thin trunk and plummeted towards the ground. The barrage of dark spheres had mostly been blocked by her weaving through the columns themselves. But upon her becoming airborne, the last volley raced towards her. Her sword flew caught her feet and allowed her to stand on it and effectively absorbed this next attack as well. Another spurt of blood erupted from Irelia's nose and ears, as well as her mouth, as she stared at Syndra with that same look.

The Sovereign observed the woman, who was floating even above her, was curiously missing the vermillion wingspan. That was when it clicked in her head, and in a panic flew away from her location. Several vermillion blades tore at the ground she was standing on. The other forty or so blades, however? They continued to fly directly at her.

Once more, Syndra attempted to shield herself with the corpses of the guards, which dissuaded many of the blades from piercing her as they were forced to change directions. Unfortunately for the Sovereign, several of these blades nicked her legs, her arms and her chest. They could have killed her then and there, but instead they settled for slicing into her with superficial wounds. Syndra quaked with an unfamiliar emotion. She had never been hurt before never mind cut like she had been.

"Just _die _already!"

The Sovereign, her face slick with blood and sweat, let out another barrage of dark spheres, six in total, at the offending woman.

Irelia's sword split apart and let her plummet to the ground once more. She twisted out of the way of the first sphere with ease, but that only meant the next sphere would surely connect. This was proven false as one of the blades flew up behind Irelia. She pushed off the flat of the blade and sailed over the dark sphere. The next sphere should have connected, but she repeated teh same process. She used her blades like makeshift platforms to grant her absurd feats of agility and mobility whilst midair.

Irelia quickly landed behind Syndra, and dashed towards her. Irelia was only three feet away from the Sovereign when she took to the air.

Syndra, in a panic, attempted to lift Irelia off the ground. Stone tiles were ripped out and flew up to her while Irelia herself stayed on the ground. She gripped the blunt ends of her blades and kept herself firmly in place. Syndra's magic was working though, the leather pouch around the woman's neck flapped wildly in an attempt to be freed to no avail.

Syndra then tried crushing Irelia once more. The pressure was so great that the ground collapsed and fell to the lower floor underneath it, yet Irelia did not move.

"Why...why won't you die?" Syndra closed her eyes in frustration as she screamed, "Why won't you die?! Why won't-"

A strong uppercut silenced the Sovereign. Her head snapped back, and she could see Irelia ascend above her. As she plummeted to the ground, she saw four blades that helped create a series of platforms for which the woman could use to her advantage.

The back of Syndra's head cracked on the ground, which completely dazed her. Her floating terrain followed its master's lead, and plummeted as well.

However, instead of crushing the fortification, on a rooftop that would be the terrain's the center point of balance, two men stood across from one another. If they looked closely, they would see one man was covered in animal hides and a thick beard while the other one was blind folded. The two grinned at one another as they held the terrain in place. Magic surged from the blind man and into the ground, as if to give them more solid footing to stand upon.

When Syndra came to, Irelia had already mounted her. She had waited patiently for the Sovereign to wake up. Syndra's blood ran cold. Finally, the look in her eyes had changed, but not for the better. Instead of lifeless eyes, they bore absolute and complete hatred for the Sovereign underneath her.

Irelia wrapped her hands around Syndra's neck, "Try and stop me, _Sovereign_."

Her hands tightened into a vice grip. She started strangling the Sovereign. Syndra squirmed and writhed, she did her best to try and escape. That feeling she felt before was stronger than ever, she was panicking: She was terrified. Dark magic surged from her fingertips, only to fizzle. There was nothing she could do, she was going to die.

Syndra let out a fearful grasp, choking and crying all the wihle, "St-st-glk...!" Her legs convulsed, her feet scraped against the ground as if she were trying to run away. When she tried to breathe, speak or yell, only spittle came out of her mouth.

Syndr reached up and tried prying Irelia off of her, which earned her more punishment. Irelia's sword split apart into two separate pairs of blades, which stretched her arms out and pinned them firmly to the ground. If she tried to move, they would cut into her wrists. One last time, she tried to call out in a fearful gurgle to no avail.

"Irelia...That is enough."

Irelia did not respond. She heard Karma speak to someone else for a moment, but it did not concern her. The Duchess called out again, "Irelia, release her!"

"No. She dies.",

"Irelia, do not kill her. She-"

"Deserves to die."

Syndras convulsions started to quiet down as the tears from her eyes mingled with the blood that poured from her forehead. Maybe another minute, and the woman will have been strangled to death.

"Irelia, do not do this," Karma pleaded.

"Balance in all things. She killed Ionians. She dies."

Suddenly, Soraka's panicked voice yelled, "Irelia!"

"Don't care."

"Irelia!" Soraka tried again.

"Irelia, please, you are angry now. Do not-"

Irelia tightened her grip around the Syndra's neck. When she spoke, it reminded Soraka of the Ionian war.

"This self deemed Sovereign, this vile, egotistical power hungry child, came here, killed my people, my friends, and she thinks she can get away with it, and why? Because apparently she's strong, because she's powerful, because she is supposed to be power without limit. Our home was destroyed because I didn't have the strength to protect it. I will fight to the bitter death before I let something like that happen to Ionia again."

Irelia jerked the woman's head back, lifted her body and readied for the final push, "Not ever again."

A man's worried voice called out to her, "Irelia...!"


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Irelia stopped. She dropped Syndra onto the ground and looked up in front of her towards the entranceway. Her leather bag bumped off her chest, now dyed crimson in her own blood. Irelia stared at the source of the voice. It was a man wrapped in blue silk. She stared at him for a few moments, shook her head and went back to strangling Syndra.

He called out again, "Irelia, don't!"

Irelia froze. Her shoulders quaked, her blades ripped out of the ground and reformed itself. She started laughing, shaking her head, "I...I failed, didn't I? This is the afterlife, right?"

She got to her feet and walked past Syndra. Her body convulsed and twitched, her left leg finally showing its damage as she dragged it useless along. A half smile was evident on her face, "I only wish...I only wish I could apologize to Karma, to Soraka, to the people of Ionia, for failing them...At least will see them soon. I tried, I tried so hard..." Her smiled widened, "Oh well. It doesn't matter anymore. At least I can see you again..."

Syndra coughed and gasped for air. She rolled over and nearly vomited from how close to death she was. Her bloodied and tear stained face looked up at the slowly walking Irelia. Her back was turned to Syndra, completely ignoring her. Complete and utter rage filled her heart. No one, no one dishonors a Sovereign in such a manner. No one does so and lives. She will die.

Syndra's hands whipped out to her sides, and grabbed the remnants of two stone pillars. She slammed her hands together, and made them race at the delusional Irelia who was still laughing and smiling in an almost insane manner.

The man ran forward, wrapped his arms around Irelia, and held her close as he waited for the resulting impact which...never came.

A forcefield stopped the pillars easily. The man could feel a gust of wind shield them while Karma walked past the two.

The Duchess fanned herself far quicker than someone should ever fan themselves as she made her way to Syndra. The Sovereign breathed heavily, "You...I am going to kill all of-"

*Fwip* *SMACK*

Syndra received a hard slap across the face from one of Karma's closed fans. It left a considerable red mark, considering the fan was made from some of the finest steel in Ionia. The Duchess' irate tone could be clearly heard, "I am going to talk, and you are going to listen."

"You...you slapped-"

*SMACK*

This time it was with the back of her hand that Karma slapped Syndra with, "You will not talk while I am talking! If you wish to act like a _child_I will treat you like one! I will bend you over my knee and I will spank you if I have to! I did not ask Irelia to spare you just so you can try killing her! You will not repeat the same mistake you made before!"

"Mistake?! What-"

Karma raised her fan at Syndra, which made the Sovereign instantly go quiet.

"I said the only mistake that the council made was not giving you a decision in what should be done! What they did, however, was merciful! What do you do with an orphan child who has such amazing power and uses it to uproot trees, fling cattle about and whenever you threw a tantrum the village doctor would be booked for weeks? How do you react to that?"

"You..."

"I. Am. Still. _Talking_!"

Syndra cowed once more.

"You have to make a choice! You were hurting people because you did not get what you wanted, and your power was without check nor limit! No one could do so! What could be done? They had two choices, kill you, or train you! They decided that because you were a child, to have you killed would be a terrible thing! They decided to have you trained in your abilities, nurtured, something you never had before! How did you repay him? You killed him the moment you found out he was limiting your abilities so you can gain control of them!"

"He was an ignorant fool! He was scared of me, of my potential!"

"And rightfully so! The moment you found out your potential, you killed him! Does that warrant fear?"

"If he hadn't-"

"If he hadn't, then you would have possibly killed more people than you had today! I am going to run a few things by you, alright? First: Those that follow you? They're scared of you! They do not respect you! I regret that they did not see what transpired here so they would know what true strength is! Secondly, you did _not_kill a legion of soldiers: you nearly killed a cohort of guards and a few thousand civilians and monks you spoiled child! That's who you killed because of your absurd amounts of pettiness! Thirdly, you fought the successor to the Hiten style! What made you think you could possibly win against her?"

"The...the Hiten...? What is-"

"The Flying Heaven technique, also known as the Sovereign slayer! The Hiten style was used to end the reign of tyranny of the Sovereigns! His sacrifice was made known since the Kinkou had to kill him for the chaos that ensued due to the collapse of the government system that was in place for so many years! He knew of the consequences, and he took responsibility for it! Sounds familiar? I don't think so, since you do not know what taking responsibility means! The books that you read from are outdated, your common sense is completely lacking, you are inexperienced in more ways than one and you do not even know what a Yordle is! What makes you think that you deserve to rule a kumquat never mind a country? Strength? Please, stop being so childish! That was just proven ineffectual! Do you know economics? Do you know the law system in place in Ionia? Do you know how to manage the country's treasury? Do you know the current political issues in Ionia? Do you know Demacia, Noxus, Piltover, Zaun, Shurmia, any of these places? Probably only from books! Do you know of the League of Legends? Do you know the political games that must be played with the Summoners? I highly doubt that!"

Karma glared at Syndra, not waiting for her to respond before firing her next question, "How about the Ionian-Noxian war? Do you know that?"

Syndra moved her lips to answer but stopped herself in the case it would earn her another slap.

"No, you don't! You were sheltered the entire time! You were kept safe! Your safety was made paramount over your master helping in the war! Did you know your master assured your safety by deterring Noxian forces himself? He killed more Noxians than people you did this day, to make sure you were kept safe! He loved you, but he was terrified of you and not your power! Oh no, he understood your power, but it was your temper! All of his reports always talk about your temper! You do not deserve to rule ants, never mind people if you cannot do something so simple as keep your temper under control!"

Karma pointed at the floating terrain, "Now go back to your castle or your fortress or whatever, go away, think about what you have done, and when you come back, we will talk! If you do not want to talk, you will deal with all of Ionia _directly_. Irelia will be the least of your worries if you try a stunt like this again! You are powerful, you have a lot of potential, you are the yang to the yin of the majority of Ionia, hence why you have so much power condensed in you! Do _not_, and I repeat myself, do _not_waste this second chance!"

The two women stared at one another until the Duchess pointed again at the floating terrain, "Go!"

Syndra breathed in and out angrily, she pointed a finger at Karma, "How d-"

"Oh you better not be thinking of trying anything else. I will resort to Noxian diplomatic techniques if I have to!"

Syndra snorted and flew away from her, cursing under her breath. Karma called out, "And you better wash your tongue next time you visit! It is unfitting for a Sovereign to have such a vulgar vocabulary!"

With the Sovereign floating away, Karma turned her attention back to Irelia and the man who held her tightly. Irelia's body went limp, a smile on her face as she passed out.

* * *

Syndra pushed past every one of her servants and serfs who stopped and questioned why she looked the way she did. She reached her inner sanctum, where she had a specially crafted throne for which she could sit on. It was incredibly comfortable. She screamed aloud, "Smithy! Tailor!"

Her scream echoed throughout the entire complex. Several minutes passed, and two men ran into the room. They bowed before her, fear alit in their eyes. They spoke in terrified unison, "Wh-what is it S-Sovereign?"

Syndra covered her injured forehead, her tone was near maniacal, "Tailor, I want you to make me new clothing. These ones have too much peasant blood on them."

"Y-yes Sovereign!"

"Smithy, I want a crown."

"A crown?"

"A crown," Syndra hissed. "I want it with a purple gem, the darkest amethyst, embedded in the center, I want it to be silver colored, and I want it to be large and exquisite. I want it to cover my forehead and let my hair flow out from behind it."

"B-but why would you want it to cover your beautiful foreh-"

"_Go_!" She screamed.

The two mousey men scurried away, leaving her alone in the dark room. She breathed in, breathed out, and muttered aloud, "They will pay. They will all pay. I am power without limit."

"Everything has its limits, Sovereign."

Syndra shot out of her seat, wildly looking around, "Who speaks?! Who's here?!"

"I am Shen, the Eye of Twilight. I am one of the Kinkou's ninja triumvirate. I am the judge."

The blue ninja walked into view from the shadows.

Syndra snorted at him, "I saw you before. You were with that Yordle thing."

"Kennen, the Heart of the Tempest," a chipper voice said. Kennen appeared next to Shen from a bolt of lightning.

"What do you two want?"

"I am going to do two things: One, reinforce what Karma said. Next time you meet her face to face in Ionia, or anywhere else that is deemed out of League boundaries, you will be civil or else-"

"Or else what?!"

Shen did not show any displeasure upon being interrupted, "Or else the League will imprison you and confine you. You will become their puppet and be used in League battles against your will."

"The League?" Syndra waved a dismissive hand at Shen, "The League means nothing to me."

Kennen palmed his face, "Do you even know what the League is?"

No response came from Syndra.

The Yordle sighed and gave his explanation in a single breath, "The League of Legends is a place in the center of Valoran in which political issues and debates that cannot be settled peacefully are done so via violence meaning it has become a stage on which beings can gain fame for themselves or a cause or simply try bettering themselves by pitting themselves against strong fighters or gain more knowledge in regards to cultures since it is a melting pot of every culture in Valoran and even alien cultures." He looked over at Shen and muttered, "I feel like I give that explanation waaay too often."

"This does not interest me," Syndra scoffed. "They are nothing to me."

"Irelia, the woman who just defeated you, is not the strongest champion in the League. There are Summoners who are much more powerful than her, and you would be made a puppet if you give them the chance."

Syndra's eyes went wide. She started quaking at the thought.

Shen continued, "We do not want that to happen. That is the second reason as to why we are here: You will follow the Balance, or you will be cut from it."

"What do you mean, the Balance?"

"If you fall into the hands of Summoners, if you become their plaything, you will be killed. That much power at their fingertips, with you having no control over it, is far too dangerous. You will be killed. You will also neglect from dropping entire pieces of floating land onto building structures. Your magic may be a natural aspect of your being, but dropping large land masses on people and buildings is not unless you return it from whence it came. You are incredibly lucky that two of the most physically and spiritually gifted men in Ionia had decided to visit the Placidium this day."

Syndra's eyes narrowed, "What makes you think you can threaten-"

Two blades wrapped themselves around her neck and pulled her towards her throne. She felt the same sensation as she did before: Fear. She was too frightened to react properly. Syndra was firmly secured on her chair as a third voice spoke,

"Akali, the Fist of Shadows. Our concern and our duty was to assure the safety of the Ionian people at the time. Irelia's duty was to assure you were stopped. We do not threaten, we state fact. If you do not follow the balance, you will be removed in order for Balance to be restored. You have officially become an issue for the Kinkou to observe and to deal with if need be."

Shen nodded, "We will be keeping an eye on you, Syndra. Always."

With that, the three ninjas disappeared. Syndra let out a frustrated scream which tore apart any nearby furniture and dented the walls. She grabbed at her bloodied face,

"The League, huh? The League is able to do all that? They think I'm weak? I'll show them...I'll show them. I'll get stronger, I am limitless. The League can do that for me? It will let me kill them? I must find them, must talk to them. I will kill them. _I _am in control. They will pay."

* * *

Irelia's eyes slowly opened. She stared at the ceiling above her. White, nothing special. She looked over to her right, there was an empty chair and a nightstand that had a bouquet of flowers. A few roses, a few lilies, and one Irelia flower, flattened and almost withered beyond recognition. She patted what she was lying down on to see what it was. It was a mattress. Who knew the afterlife would be so barren? She sat up and rubbed her face. Upon second look, she realized this was her room. There was her desk and its drawers, her mirror, her mannequin dressed in her armor, her armoire, so...the afterlife was the Placidium?

She shuffled over the side of the bed, and gasped out in pain.

_'Definitely not the afterlife.'_

She grabbed her chest, she could feel her bruised and broken ribs. The covers slid off her, showing the multitude of securely wrapped bandages that encircled her body from the neck down over where all of her open wounds were. She could clearly see the leather pouch that still adorned her neck.

'_I almost resemble Amumu,_' she thought to herself.

Her sword hummed to life and floated over to her. She steadied herself on the flat of the blade and stood up. She walked over to her desk, and saw a white smock that had been laid out there. She looked in the mirror, she could see the gashes on her face that had been healed, though red lines marked where they once were. Under Soraka and Karma's care, they would disappear soon enough. She rarely scarred.

She put the smock on and looked around for some footwear. A pair of sandals waited patiently at the foot of her bed. She slipped into them, and walked towards her door. She could hear arguing. Arguing? That was odd.

She opened the door, and saw Prince Jarvan being held back by Shyvana while yelling at the someone else, "I have every right to assure her safety! It is my duty as her ally and as the Prince of Demacia-"

"She's hurt at the moment you ijit! She doesn't need you, me, and the dragon lady to visit all at the same time!"

"Did...Did you just call the Prince of Demacia an ijit?"

"Yes, yes I did! Let her rest, all of _your_yelling will wake her up, so stop it and walk away! I'm seeing her first!"

"My yelling? _My_yelling?! You're the one who's yelling! I'm just concerned for her safety!"

Irelia's eyes went wide. She stepped out into the open and looked at who Jarvan was arguing with.

His long, black hair flowed down his back like a river. His emerald eyes was complemented by the red tint in his face as he argued with Jarvan. His lithe body was covered by traditional Ionian clothing. A wooden charm that had childish carvings on it read, _**いれりあ**_. Save for the ridiculous stubble that adorned his face, she recognized him instantly.

"Oh you're concerned, huh?! Let me tell you who should be concerned-"

"Zelos...?"

He looked over at her, any sign of anger disappeared. He smiled meekly, "Hey, Irie! ...So, ah, I had something planned to say, but..."

The man looked over at Jarvan, motioning with his head the opposite direction. The Prince nodded and smiled at Zelos, "I will come back later. I see you are fine, milady."

Jarvan and Shyvana left the siblings alone in the now silent hallway.

The two stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Zelos whistled, "Soo yeah, you musta seen the flowers in your room. They're not mine, truth be told. That one, the little one, is. Friend of yours came by, River? Regis? I think her name was Riven? Ah..."

He awkwardly clapped his hands together, "So, I'm back! Surprise?"

Irelia burst out into a fit of laughter. She laughed so hard she intermixed gasps of pain and laughter with one another. She almost fell to the ground when Zelos rushed over and attempted to catch her again. This time her sword flew over, caught her and helped prop her back up.

Zelos smirked at her, "Hey hey, don't strain yourself now! I mean I wasn't gone that long, was I?"

A sharp glare from Irelia made him wince, "Too soon? Yeah, too soon. Totally inappropriate. Trying to be funny, ah..."

"You are such an idiot," Irelia laughed. She stood back up and smiled at him. It was strange, they were almost the same height. That only meant it was easier to hug him now as she wrapped her arms around him.

He hugged her back, "I'm sorry it took so long, Irelia, I'm so sorry. We have a lot to catch up on, like...That."

Zelos pointed at the floating sword that hummed with excitement, "Why is dad's blade, y'know...floating like that? I mean, for him, it wasn't exactly like that, and who was that chick with the purple and black dress? And what is-"

"Right now, I just need some rest, Zelos. I'll explain it to you when I am better."

"Alright, alright, I'll just pop in and make sure you're bundled-"

Irelia shook her head, "I don't want you to see me like this. Please. I am alright. I can take care of myself."

Zelos nodded, "Yes yes, right...Right. I'll..." He pointed about the hallway, "Make myself familiar again. I got lost for like an hour when I was trying to find your room, had to be guided by that Riven woman here. Get well soon, Irelia. We have a lot to catch up on."

Irelia smiled broadly at Zelos, not very sure how she should properly react. She went with what first came to mind. She reached into the pouch, and withdrew from it a small wooden charm. It read, "ゼロス." She dangled it in front of her, smiling as she spoke,

"Welcome home, Zelos."

* * *

Author's Note: I know there are so many reviews I have not replied to, but I want to let you know that I will reply to each one personally! I am so sorry I haven't yet, I've just been a bit swamped! Thank you all for reading!


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The day Zelos returned was simultaneously a wonderful, and sad, day for Ionia. One thousand twenty seven people died in the attack on the Placidium, a little under two thousand were wounded.

Everyone had dozens of questions to ask him, but they knew better than to try and talk to him at the moment. He had a lot of catching up to do.

Zelos made his way towards Irelia's room. Over the past few days he attempted to reacquaint himself with the layout of the Placidium. So far, her room was the only area of the Placidium he knew for certain. He was still confused as to which room was his, and how much had changed over the decade.

It was his time to check up on Irelia. He was about to turn the corner when he saw the shadows of two familiar women. They were muttering about something. Zelos paused for a moment, deciding if he should interrupt their conversation or-

"She is not showing signs of physical trauma."

He heard Soraka's voice reply, "I know. Her body is still catching up to the damage."

"It's not like last time, is it?"

"League matches are nothing compared to what she just suffered. It could show today, it could show tomorrow, or next week or the next year. We must prepare. Although it is not as severe as when she fought the Noxians, it is still severe enough for me to be very concerned."

"She is resilient."

Soraka and Karma started to walk away, the volume of their voices lowering with every step they took opposite of where Zelos stood, "But for how much longer? Her rate of deterioration has most likely increased because of this event. We will have to see in a few days, hopefully...worse symptoms...year or two?...who knows if...long..."

Zelos drummed his fingers against his arms. What in the hells were they talking about? He heard Irelia's door open, and light footsteps leave her room. He spun around the corner with a wide smile on his face, "Oy, Irie! You're supposed to be resting!"

The bandages around Irelia's body peeked out from underneath her neckline and spiraled down her arms. The baos she usually worn were affixed firmly in her hair. She wore a simple, cotton dark red shirt with a pair of dark slacks that were held up by a belt, as well as a pair of tabi and wooden geta. The limp in her leg was only slight now despite the severity of her "sprained" ankle only scant days ago.

"I am fine, Zelos."

"Says the girl who was bleeding in my arms a few days ago. Bed, you, back to it," He playfully ordered.

"No," Irelia shook her head. She walked of her room, her sword bobbed behind her as she spoke, "I am going to go insane if I have to sit in bed any longer. I need to walk a bit, I need to move a bit and it is almost lunch. I want to eat something with a little bit more body than soup." She muttered under her breath in a dry tone, "If I have to drink one more bowl of soup I am going to murder someone."

Zelos walked up next to her, "Well, if I can't convince you to stay in bed, you have two options: One, I drag you back..." His smile widened, "Or two, I make you lunch and we can talk a bit longer than for a minute or two."

Irelia raised an eyebrow, then shared his rather infectious smile, "Lunch it is."

"Alright then!" He started to walk in front of her only to stop in his tracks. "...Er, maybe you should lead. I'm still gaining my bearings."

Irelia took point and led her slightly confused brother through his home of the Placidium.

* * *

Oil sizzled. The smell of spices filled the air.

"The entire village...?"

"The entire village. I was one of the only survivors and the others...they were eventually claimed by the war. I am the last survivor."

He sighed and rubbed his face, "And I wasn't there for it. Dear gods, I am so sorry, Irie. I am so, so sorry."

"You were there, Zelos..." Irelia tapped her chest, "Always."

"Irie, that's a wonderful sentiment it is, but we both know that's bull. I'm not stupid."

"I-"

"How did you become the Captain of the Guards?" Zelos cast her a look as he flipped the contents of the frying pan over, "What happened to Captain Takeru?"

"He was killed during the battle of Placidium. He died defending Ionia."

"Ah man, not Takeru..." Zelos sighed, "I gotta go pay my respects. So why were you made captain? I mean, congrats on it and all, But... why are you captain and why are you wearing the Mantle of Decorum?"

"I was honored for fighting in the war."

"Strange, they only issue that sorta honor to master debaters and political stuff. Wait a tick...how old were you when you fought? How long did the war last?"

"Two years. I was fourteen."

Zelos nodded his head. '_Fourteen. She was fourteen._' His tone was still light as he joked, "Damn! That's young! You deserve that honor than! Those Noxian scumbags didn't stand a chance 'gainst my little sis!" Fortunately for him, Irelia could not see the anger that seemed to want to burn the food in front of him.

"So... How come it was floating like..." He pointed with his chin at Irelia's floating sword, "That?"

She looked over at the sword and settled it in a corner of the kitchen. The other chefs that should have been here were herded away to give the two room. One word from Irelia was all that was needed to convince them.

"I learned the extent of the Hiten style in the war. I learned what it means to utilize father's technique and how it extends to anything that has a yearning."

"Kinda freaky if you ask me," he laughed. "Never expected to see it fly again. It's crazy you figured that out on your own! You've gotta tell me how..."

A peek from the corner of his eye made him see a look of melancholy spark across Irelia's face for a brief instant.

"You okay, Irie? The wounds acting up?"

"A bit. I will be fine."

Zelos shoveled the food onto a plate. It was a stir fry of various vegetables such as carrots, green beans, white beans, onions, and sweet peppers. Strips of beef were seared and assured to be medium rare. Thick cut noodles were pulled out of the boiling water and tossed in with the vegetable medley. He shuffled them about before he reached for a bowl of peanut sauce when her hand stopped his arm. His sleeve pulled back a bit, which allowed a scar that resembled a burn wound to peek out.

"How-?"

"That's how life is sometimes, can't expect everything!"

He quickly covered his arm back up, "Still like peanut sauce, right?"

Irelia rested her hand on his arm, "Zelos...what happened?"

"Ah...well...Let's get the food on the table first, alright? Peanut sauce?"

"No, thank you," Irelia walked over to where the chefs were, leaving Zelos dumbfounded. She came back with a bowl of finely crushed Galin region chili peppers. She shrugged, "They are not as spicy as the ones we had back home, but...they'll do."

Zelos raised an eyebrow, "You? Eat spice?"

"Yes, why?"

"Who are you and what have you done to Irelia?" He chuckled, "You used to make the most sour face whenever dad and I ate his curry. The one time you tried it..." He puffed his cheeks out and laughed at the memory.

Irelia rolled her eyes, took a spoonful of the sauce and promptly swallowed it. She gave him a half smirk as she sat back down at the table she was sitting at.

He blinked, dipped his finger into the sauce, put it to his tongue and nearly screamed. His face went instantly red, he started coughing, gasping for air, "M-man! I haven't had spice in t-too long!" He coughed and sputtered.

Irelia could not help but burst out in laughter. She grinned at him, "Maybe you should stick to the peanut sauce, huh?"

"Pft, as if!"

Zelos promptly dumped the contents of the sauce bowl onto the noodles and the stir fry. He shoveled it back into the hot frying pan and started to toss it about. Eventually he put it back into the large plate and walked it over to Irelia. He grabbed two more smaller plates, set them in front of one another, and then two pairs of chopsticks.

While they divided the food up, Zelos talked,

"We were a few days into our trip when our lookout spotted some Zaunite warships. We had to push a bit further north to assure we would not be spotted by them, and things were smooth sailing for a while. When we reached near the Freljords, however..."

He sighed, "The Gelid vortex. We had not expected it to be nearly as powerful as it was, since we thought it confined to a landmass. It had managed to stretch out towards the route we were taking, and made the waters rough. Funny enough, we weren't in the heart of the vortex, we were a few miles on its outskirts but it was so harsh that it affected the sea for miles on end. It was not just an ice storm though, it was...everything, really. Lightning, snow, hail, sleet, rough seas, and then our ship actually caught...fire. Not from a lightning strike, oh no, we were at least that lucky. It was weird, it was a fire that encapsulated the ship. It didn't burn unless you went near it. We couldn't navigate by the stars, our compasses wouldn't stop spinning, we were essentially useless. Once we thought we had reached the calm of the storm, we were redirected into the Veil."

Irelia's face dropped. The Veil of Storms. The reason why Valoran had so few visitors from other countries was because of this phenomenon. It seemingly encircled the Conqueror's Sea and the Guardian Sea. The Shadow Isles were on the borders of the Veil. Its power and ferocity was myth, no one dared tried to cross it, no one sane. Only two had managed to do so: a champion named Olaf and a champion named Keghan, better known as Brand. To this day both refuse to speak of how they reached Valoran. There are many theories as to why this Veil exists, since it was not always there. The most popular theory is because of the increasing decay of magic and the lifestream in Runeterra due to all of the Rune Wars that took place, and this was just one of the many tolls that has been visibly taken on the environment.

Zelos took a mouthful of food, which made him wince and rush for a glass of milk. Once he returned, with a jug full of milk, he continued, "The ship was ripped and torn apart. There are...things that live in the Veil. I'm not really sure what, but there are...things. I barely managed to hold on to a board, the water was cold and..." He shrugged, "I don't remember much. I...I didn't want to die. I had a promise to keep. I floated for maybe days, or weeks? I don't really know. When I was found, I was being poked in the head by a finger. Whoever this person was, they thought I was dead. I quickly proved this wrong the manliest way I knew how."

He made the motion of regurgitating while smiling at the memory, "That surprised them! So, when I woke up, I found out I'm on...an island paradise. Literally, a pastoral paradise, full of beautiful women. Curvaceous, beautiful things. Green, yellow, purple leaves for hair, the most immaculate eyes and forestry, their skin as smooth finely spun silk, and these women? Seemed to be absolutely everywhere. That was when I realized, that these women? They were dryads, they were actually dryads. I couldn't do much, I was pretty much dead, and they kept me from leaving the island to assure I was healthy."

Zelos took another mouthful of the noodles, which made him wince once again. He looked over at Irelia's plate to see it was almost emptied and she was giving herself seconds while she stared at him.

"It took me about a year to recover from that episode. When that was done and I could properly walk again? They wanted me to stay with them, and...well, I couldn't say no. Literally, I couldn't say no, they didn't want to lose the only male looking humanoid they had seen in centuries. They were too enthralled with me and my appearance. They also thought, and rightfully so, that if I went sailing without any knowledge as to where to go, how far I was or anything I would most likely die. I also couldn't help but tell them how the boat was made, via lumber. They were really, really not a fan of that, or the fact that I use more trees, dead or not, to aid my escape. I didn't have my swords, they were lost at sea, so there went that option. Besides, their magic? Absurd. Never seen anything like it, so I couldn't try to fight them even if I wanted to. That was when...Heh..."

He rubbed the wooden talisman around his neck, "I had a book in my satchel, along with my compass, the only things that managed to be saved 'side from your gift. The satchel friggin' froze to the board I was clutching onto when I washed up, and then I looked in, I saw I still had your flower. It was crushed between the pages, frozen, but preserved."

Zelos took another mouthful of food, this time without reaction since his mouth had gone completely numb from the spiciness. He swallowed, drank from the jug of milk, and continued, "I took a chance. I wasn't sure how it work, if there was any pollen left, anything, but I had to try. I offered them a tree and blossoms they had never seen before, nor ever will, and in exchange I am allowed to leave."

"How did you communicate with them?" Irelia raised an eyebrow.

Zelos' response was in an indistinguishable language, which made Irelia tilt her head in utter confusion. If one were observant enough, they would see that the stems of the onions he left behind grew slightly greener upon hearing his language.

"I learned pretty quick. So, the deal was struck and I gave them the flower. One of them took the flower, kissed it, and foomph! Her hair replicated it, all pink and crimson petals and all, it was astounding! All the other dryads became jealous of how beautiful she looked. Her skin changed to a darker brown, resembling the trunk of the tree, and she essentially became a walking tree. My trade? I gave them a new plant, from a faraway land, and I can take one of theirs to sail with with all the fruit I can carry. It took two years to construct a boat that was able to sail. This is mostly because I found out I am terrible at making boats, the first ten boats or so just sank. Thank goodness I had more lumber than a single tree when I explained that I needed only dead trees to build the ship. Anyways, eventually I made a glorified canoe. Now, not the smartest thing, but I set sail with a week's worth of fruit. I needed to find somewhere else, anywhere else that could help me more than those women."

Zelos finished his plate and reached over to the larger dish, only to find scarce morsels left. Irelia was apparently so enthralled with his retelling that she had not noticed how much she was eating.

He laughed and continued, "So, my guess was that I mostly likely went northwards. Hoping my compass helps me go south until I hit Valoran, I get hit by another storm. This time, however? I'm saved by...Ah, pft, the Common name..."

Zelos tapped his chin, "They call themselves Lokfarans. I found out very quickly that when yelling at them in Common, they understood Common quite well. Also, broken rudders? Don't scare them. This all earned me a punch to the face, I blacked out again, and when I woke up, I was on my way to Lokfar to be changed their mind halfway home, and I essentially became their slave, at first. Eventually I became a member of the community after a few years. I was exotic, something they had never seen before. They almost felt like it would be a waste to sell their only Mykblomst. I was used for everything, from farm labor to cooking to entertaining to training. They used me for anything and everything."

He shook his head, "I was there for the remainder of my years, I eventually convince them that I need to get back to Valoran after I dueled one of the chieftans, ah...Olaf Thrymgaa the...Twelfth I think? They agreed to help me reach home on one condition: I find the Lokfaran expedition that had come here before, and find out what happened to them. If I do not return to tell them the news, they'll come and find their Mykblomst and ask in person. They sailed me to as close to the Veil as they could, put me in a raft and pushed me in a general direction. Yeah, not going back there 'less I have to. Nice people, absolutely insane."

Zelos leaned back into his chair as he finished his story, "When I woke up, I was sort of completely crazy from all the ridiculousness I've been through and found myself face up in a bed. At this point, I'm sick of waking up like this. So a stark raving lunatic, almost completely naked, screaming in several languages, and then I find out I'm on a Demacian ship that picked me up. From that point on, I was returned to Demacia, freshened up a bit, and Prince Jarvan had me doted on and checked on until I recovered. I recovered after a month or so, sorta lost track of time honestly, I got back onto another ship for the traditional Demacian embassy spiel, and we made our way to Ionia as soon as we could and...well, now I'm here."

Irelia got up from her seat, her face downcast, "...Is that really what happened?"

"Yeap! Crazy, eh? At least I'm back now, right?"

Irelia's shoulder shook. Zelos got up and walked over to her, "Hey hey, what's wrong? Aren't you glad I'm back? Should I hitch a ride on another boat and go back to the dryads?"

"How...how did you manage to survive?"

Zelos raised an eyebrow. What an odd question to ask. "Wha? Uh...I'm not...really sure. Divine providence? The stars were looking after me? I really didn't question it. I just wanted to come back, I wanted to see you again, Irie. That's all that matter-"

"You said the bag was frozen the board you clung onto, right?"

"...Yeah?"

"Same as the charm?"

"Well, no, that was fused to my...Uh...Hey is that a topic ch-"

Irelia reached over and flipped his shirt open. She could see burn scars that stretched out from beneath his collar bone. "Frostbite. How is your face not...?"

"The Dryads wanted to make sure my face was still handsome. They are able to completely remove scarring with their magic, no matter how bad it is. If I stayed another decade, they could have healed the rest of the scars."

Irelia's emerald eyes went wide. She stepped away from Zelos, "You...you came back. You actually lived through so much...so much hell..."

"Irelia, what's wrong?"

She shook her head, "N-nothing. Just...surprised. I'm glad you're still alive, Zelos."

"Hey, if it helps, I am too," he laughed.

"It's not funny!" Irelia unexpectedly yelled back. Her hand slammed the table, a crack appeared in it from the force of the strike. She did not seem like she put too much effort into it despite the damage it caused.

The two stared at each other, the awkward silence rose with each second that passed.

Irelia's arm shook slightly, "I...I think I'm a little tired, sorry Zelos. I-" Irelia stopped. Her nose twitched. "...What smells like horse?"

Shyvana stepped into the kitchen. Her draconic eyes flicked back and forth as she scanned the two siblings, "I thought if I followed the smell of spice I would find you two. Like sister, like brother. Prince Jarvan would like to let the two of you know that tomorrow tonight there will be a formal banquet. Irelia, he would like for you to attend, but you do not have to if you are still in the throes of recovery. It is in memory of those who died during the attack and a celebration for life and its miracles. Anyone who is able bodied and willing is welcome to join, including those involved in the attack. It will also commemorate the day that the wayward brother Zelos has returned, and for Demacia and Ionia's continued alliance. It is going to be a large banquet."

Zelos pointed at the Demacian woman, "Why do you smell like h-"

"**I will **_**gut **_**you if you finish that sentence**," Shyvana snarled. "Do you know how hard it is to get the smell of horse sweat out of your hair? Do you?!"

He raised his hands defensively, "Got it, don't state the obvious. I got it. But...how did you get horse sweat in your-"

Another snarl made him step back, "Got it, got it. Don't ask questions ever."

Shyvana calmed down and sighed, "Sorry, it's more than...Sorry. Zelos, I do not mean to be rude, but I wish to ask Irelia something related to the pr-"

"What are you doing out of bed, Irelia?"

A woman in red heels walked in. She was wearing a nurse's outfit, the white clothing contrasted with her black hair and emerald eyes. Akali motioned to Irelia, "You missed lunch. Why are you eating this instead of the soup?"

"Relax a little," Zelos laughed. "Honestly, you make it sound like she was dying or something. And...Why are you wearing that kind of outfit, Akali? That seems a bit...how to say this tastefully?"

Her green eyes flitted. She seemingly stared into his soul as she spoke in a stern tone, "I am in this outfit because I am told that it helps relieve the stress of the wounded since white is associated with the idea of life. Apparently my normal attire perturbs those who are wounded or dying. Irelia's battle was harsh, she suffered-"

Unknown to Zelos or to anyone that could not see behind Akali, a bread knife prodded her kidney. Akali looked over at Irelia who shook her head, a pleading glint in her eyes. The ninja had never seen such a look from Irelia before. She sighed, "She is still exhausted. She should be resting."

"Yeah, I suppose but come on, soup? That's just mean, even for you."

"Procedure is procedure," Akali replied. "I was sent to make sure Irelia was not gallivanting about. She is. I have put paints, inks, brushes, paper, I have provided everything in your room that may warrant you to leave. You will have soup for dinner."

"Can you at least put doufu in it?"

"If you will not leave your room, then yes."

Zelos gave a quick wave to Irelia, "Not to interrupt anything, but I think I'm going to go for a walk. I'll let you relax, Irie. I'll pop by again tonight, alright?" He smiled. "No worries, I won't be going anywhere too far."

Shyvana slightly adjusted her armor in a somewhat awkward manner. She felt like she should have left a while ago. This was when Akali looked over and stated the obvious,

"You smell of horse. Why is that?"

The dragon woman growled as she palmed her face with a gauntleted hand, "Just...Look, the smell isn't coming out and-"

"Have you tried tomato juice?"

"...Pardon?"

"Tomato juice. Works on most foul odors."

"I thought that was only for skunks?"

"I would try for horse as well."

Zelos left the kitchen with a slight wave to Irelia before he parted.

* * *

The moment he was out of sight his jovial smile darkened. He started to mull in his own thoughts. So many things, so many things he had to consider. How stupid his mission to Demacia was, how stupid the expedition turned out to be, the fact that Ionia joined the League, the worried murmurs of Soraka and Karma, Irelia's weird outburst, the extent of her injuries that Akali spoke of. Why was Karma with Soraka though? She was not a healer, although there was that wind barrier that saved the two of them. Did she gain an aptitude for magic? Wind magic? Why wind? Why was Soraka a blue skinned goat unicorn thingamajig? Was this all a result of the war?

Above all of this, he could not get the look Irelia gave that gravity woman out of his head. That look, that absolute hatred, the tone in her voice, all of that, he did not recognize them. He saw a familiar light in her eyes when she snapped at him just now. Was that who Irelia was now? Was he gone for so long that he could no longer recognize her? How much of this was his fault? What could he do? Was that who Irelia became? He was not sure. He had a lot to catch up on. After the celebration was done tomorrow, at least people would become less busy. Then he could pick up the rest of the shattered pieces of the puzzle.

Too many thoughts filled his mind, which promptly were pushed aside when a voice interrupted them.

"What is troubling you?"

A quick, cursory glance made Zelos see a white haired woman that wore a simple cotton shirt, a pair of beige slacks and work boots. Her skin was tanned and scarred, as though she had been through a war. He would consider such an idea if it were not for her eyes. There was something about her amber eyes that made him feel comfortable for some reason.

"...Riven, right? Thanks for the other day. I'm just thinking 'bout stuff." He smiled at her and attempted small talk, his cheery tone forced, "So are you going to come to the banquet tomorrow?"

"Banquet? Even if I did know about it beforehand, no, I will not be," she replied. "I will be going back to the Navori province tomorrow. I am going to say goodbye to Irelia, see how she is faring and then be on my way."

Zelos nodded his head, "Fair enough. She needs her friends, y'know? It'd be good if you came, but I understand. Have fun with those restoration efforts!" He laughed, "You've done more than I ever did already! Later!"

Before he could move, Riven interrupted him, "You should speak them."

"Them?" He looked over at her, "Who's them?"

"Whoever or whatever it is that is on your mind, you should speak about them. You should not let the emotions fester. The only way to disinfect a wound is to flush it out completely. A bandage will only cover it."

He shrugged his shoulders, "Another day or two won't hurt. They've festered for eleven years already, how can it get any worse?" Zelos started to walk away, "It can wait for after tomorrow. After the joke of a celebration is done, we can face reality again. Thanks for the talk, Riven."

"We will meet again soon," she replied. "We have to talk about-"

"Yeap, sure will. Later."

With that, he walked away, he walked away with a fake smile on his face. Who knew what thoughts ran through his head.

* * *

Author's Note: I've set up a forum! If you have any story suggestions, questions you want to be shown in public, anything, just pop on by and post it! forum/Story-Suggestions/122201/


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

When the sun rose, a mass funeral was conducted for all that died. Everyone attended, and speeches were made. Irelia was clad in her ceremonial crimson armor, the Mantle of Decorum hung behind her head, and when she spoke Zelos could not help but feel small. His sister had become a wonderful public speaker over the years.

After this, everyone prepared for the evening's festivities. For Ionians, it was not distasteful to do such a thing, for death is but a part of life.

Evening came and it was time for the banquet.

Zelos was actually clean shaven, his hair was tied up into a long ponytail and he wore a simple, yet formal kimono. The gi was a dark hunter green, his undershirt was black while his hakama was a navy blue which matched with his tabi. His sandals were tatami sandals, he could not take the added height from geta. In a way, in this attire, he felt like his old self. He never had to wear armor from the sheer speed he was able to fight with. He always prefered the fluidity and the grace that only loose kimonos could give him.

He paced back and forth somewhat nervously. It would be pretty much his inauguration back into Ionia today. A lot of doubts filled his mind, there were a lot of issues, a lot of anger, a lot of questions he had to ask, but he did not want to dampen today. He had seen Master Yi the other day, his old friend. He wanted to punch him in the face for letting Irelia fight in the war. She was stubborn, she always was. If there was something she wanted to do, almost nothing could change her mind. She was one for action rather than words, always was.

"Zelos?"

He looked up and smiled at the two women.

Karma was dressed in her usual attire since she almost always wore formal clothing. Soraka's royal blue dress covered her cloven feet, her chest was covered by orange silk blouse while a formal scarlet miniature cape wrapped itself around her neck.

Zelos walked over and tapped his head against Soraka's forehead. It was strange, he remembered her being taller. He smiled as he said, "Hey you, you've been avoiding me or something?"

"Me? Never, Zelos." Her arms wrapped around him in an embrace, "It is truly wonderful to see you. I am sorry, but we were busy with the wounded from the attack. I should have done this sooner."

He patted the Starchild's back, "It's alright, I understand. Although, before we get too giddy, and please forgive my lack of tact 'cuz there's really no easy to ask this, but why are you blue?"

Soraka winced. Her tone had a slight shake to it as she replied, "The war took a terrible toll on many people, Zelos. This is my punishment for my actions."

"You? Punished? What?" Zelos drew back from her. He scanned her face and shrugged, "I don't see any punishment here. I see the same gentle, kind person who helped raise me, just a little bit more blue."

Soraka laughed and playfully shoved his chest, "And I see you are still a little charmer. That tongue will get you in trouble one day."

"I'm not in trouble now, I'm not in trouble yet so we'll have to see," he smirked. Zelos looked over at Karma, "And you, you have grown up so much. Duchess and a member of the Council. I shoulda expected that from you."

"I am sure that everyone will be curious as to what..." Karma slightly tilted her head, a pained expression now on her face, "For lack of better words, happened to you."

"Yeah yeah, I'll tell you all about the beautiful dryads and the big bearded men who made me cook for an entire banquet while I danced on my hands."

"Now there is no reason to be rude, Zelos."

"I'm not. I have a lot of stories to tell."

Karma gave him a polite bow as he released Soraka. He walked over and gave Karma a big, overbearing hug, "Come on, it's been a decade! A hug won't kill you!"

Karma's face buried itself into his chest due to her bowed position. Her hair was slightly mussed as she straightened her attire. "Are you ready?"

"To go in? Yeah, a few hundred people, no problem. I've dealt with way worse."

Irelia's voice spoke up, "That is good to hear, Zelos."

He looked over his shoulder and grinned.

Irelia wore a modest scarlet kimono with a white border which mimicked the baos in her hair. A white ribbon wrapped around her waist and nearly dangled down to her zori footwear. A pair of white tabi were snugly fitted into her sandals as she gracefully walked towards them. The Mantle of Decorum floated behind her head and their father's sword floated at her side. When the fabric of the dress flitted upwards from one of her steps, a glimpse of a hemline of a pair of light pants could be seen above her ankles.

Karma sighed, "Well, at least I convinced you to put a dress on."

"She looks much better in one," Zelos laughed. He held his arm out towards Irelia, "Are you nervous? Want to go arm in arm?"

"Zelos..."

He laughed again and cricked his neck, "Fine fine, don't hold my hand. I'm the one who's nervous, not you. Don't help me or anything."

"You remember the procession line, right Zelos?"

"Yeah yeah, first the Council, then you and Soraka, then Master Yi and his student, then some Ahri chick and we're last. The Council, Lee, the student and said chick come from that side, we come from this side. See? I remember things. I'm not dumb."

Irelia rolled her eyes and reached over to his ear. She cupped the back of it and touched a scar that would be easily missed if one did not know to look there, "Says the man who fought a goose and lost."

"Hey, that goose was tough! It pretty much fought like a rabid, magically enchanted bear! It had be a magic goose."

Irelia's lips broke into a surprisingly sweet smile, "Yes, the very same 'bear' you told father that attacked me."

Zelos grinned, "Hey, so long as I'm around, I'll be there to look after you, Irie."

Soraka visibly tensed. Karma shot her a questioning look which made the Starchild shake her head.

Master Yi and a tall, lanky monkey walked into view. Master Yi wore his usual Wuju style clothing, except his trademark goggles were missing. The monkey was dressed in dark red armor with sanguine cloth parts, the metal was outlined in a dull gold. The monkey's golden eyes carried a strange intelligence, almost as strange as the staff he held over his shoulder.

Yi grinned the moment he saw Zelos and walked over to him, "Sergeant Zelos, it has been a long time." The Wuju master gave a quick bow, "You almost seem unchanged physically."

Zelos shrugged, "What can I say? I got looks that can kill, and kill they did." He looked over at the monkey, "So...is this your pet or something?"

"Ook ook," the monkey chittered sarcastically and made a few hand gestures.

Zelos raised an eyebrow, "I don't speak sign language. What?"

"Ook ook, me want banana. Me ask you for food. Me pet."

"Oh okay, in that case can someone get the smartass a banana?"

"Smartass?!" The monkey chittered. "Why I oughta...Heh. How'd you figure out?"

"Aside from the talking bit? I'm quick on the uptake. Sorry, didn't mean to call you a pet. With all the stuff I've seen you'd think I would be a bit more open minded. So who are you?" Zelos cheerily asked.

"I'm Wukong, student of the Wuju style!"

Now it was Zelos' turn to be surprised. "You're the student? I thought it would have been Sakura if anyone." He looked around and clicked his tongue, "Now that I think about it, your sister rarely ever strayed more than a few meters from you. Where is little Sakura? Is she hiding or something?"

Everyone fell quiet, save for Irelia. Irelia spoke with perhaps a touch of too much bluntness, "She died."

Zelos blinked. He clicked his teeth as awkwardly as his tone of voice became, "Ah...my bad. Sorry, Yi. Didn't mean to, y'know...My condolences."

"Let tonight be a joyous occasion, to commemorate the return of my old friend. There will be many days for us to reflect and to discuss what has happened in the past. Let us focus on the present, and on the future."

They would have a lot to talk about, particularly about the promise Yi, Akali and Soraka made. That could come later though, seeing as how upset he was at the mention. Zelos walked over and clapped Yi's shoulder, "Agreed. Let's try and focus on the better things of tonight, but...can I speak with Irelia quickly? We won't be late, promise."

Karma nodded, "Of course, just one thing slightly bothers me. Master Yi, should Wukong not be on the other side?"

The monkey grinned cheekily, "I'm there, and here! Hah! Told you I'd gotten better!"

A puff of smoke, and the monkey disappeared. Karma rolled her eyes and let out a light titter, "You have a few minutes before things begin. We will give you some privacy."

Master Yi nodded his head towards Zelos and Irelia, "I will let you know if you dawdle too long."

Karma, Soraka and Yi walked towards the expected doors while Irelia and Zelos lagged back.

He bluntly stated, "I'm becoming a League champion, Irelia."

Her emerald eyes flicked over at him. Worry and anger could be seen in them, "What?"

"Did you think I didn't know that you're all League champions? Do you think Jarvan and I spoke about meat, women and how fast we can drink our alcohol? Nooo, not at all, sorry to disappoint you but the man cannot hold his liquor," Zelos' jovial tone did not waver. "Even Soraka, our Soraka, is in the League. If you're in the League, I'll be in the League. Dad's corpse can't spin any faster, can it?"

Irelia's knuckles went white, her hands balled into fists, "It was necessary, Zelos. I had to join."

"And I agree with you, I unfortunately agree with you. But hey, if we're taking a piss on our morals then I'm not going to let you sit on that sinking ship alone. I'm going to announce my choice to join the League at this dinner," Zelos looked over at her with a broad smile on his face. "I'm not telling you this so you can dissuade me, I'm telling you this so I don't surprise you. I'm going to be there for y-"

"No!" Irelia yelled. She stepped in front of him and poked his chest, "You will _not_join the League!"

"Oh?" He chuckled, "And why not?"

Irelia's voice took a more commanding tone to it, "You came home, you fulfilled your promise, you don't need to do anything else. You don't owe me anything else. You will not join the League."

A roar of laughter erupted from Zelos, "What's wrong with your voice, Irie? I-"

"My voice? Nothing is wrong with my voice," Irelia snapped. "Your voice, however, what's wrong with yours? You're laughing about this. Why are you laughing? You are not joining the League."

Zelos looked over at Irelia, and shook his head, "Oh you do not want me to be serious, Irelia. You sincerely don't-"

"I do. I really do. Take something seriously for once." Irelia threw her hands up in frustration, "Why are you smiling and laughing like an idiot? This is a serious commitment. You came home, you did your duty, you do not need to fight anymore. You can relax-"

"You relax, I relax," Zelos retorted. "And let's look at my list of achievements, shall we? I was sent to go to Demacia, right? To go to them and ask them for help in the incoming war? I failed there. So let's go to the next point, Demacia heard news of the war, right? What happened? They were stopped by the League. So even if I got to Demacia, it would have amounted to nothing. Did I return home in time to make sure you didn't fight? Nope, sure didn't do that! This celebration, we both know is a complete joke, it's my big return! So let me do this, let me give today meaning, let me be your big b-"

"You trusted me to defend Ionia, Zelos," Irelia's voice grew louder and angrier. "I kept my promise and you kept yours, you came home. I'm glad to have you home, Zelos, I don't want you to fight. Not now, not ever again."

Zelos threw his hands up, his jovial tone still lit in his voice, "And what would you want me to do? Hm? What would _you_want me to do?"

"I want you to have a family," Irelia replied. "I want you to be happy, Zelos. I want you to find someone you love, I want you to raise children, I want to see nephews and nieces and I want you to be happy. I don't want you to fight, now now, not ever again."

Zelos snickered and waved her off, "I thought I was supposed to be the one telling you to get married all this time! I've been gone for a damn long time, I'm sure you found someone! Come on, you got a head start on me! Why don't you get married?"

Irelia went quiet for three seconds, two seconds too long.

He did not hear her reply, and kept the same smile on his face. Inside him, however, a growing feeling of dread grew ever larger. Something was wrong.

Master Yi peeked from around the corner, "Zelos? Irelia? It will be time soon."

Irelia nodded, "Thank you, Master Yi." She looked over at Zelos, and took his hands into hers. Her commanding voice cracked, for just a moment, as she appealed to him, "Please Zelos, don't join the League."

Something was definitely wrong.

Zelos grinned, "Eh, mayyybe...maybe not! We'll have to see the mood I'm in, eh?"

"Zelos..."

"Come on, it's a big decision. You can't expect me to say yes or no right away," he said as he winked at her.

* * *

They walked towards the door in complete silence. A loud voice introduced the two, "And today marks a special day! Today, we officially welcome back to Ionia our wayward sergeant! We welcome back the last son of the Hiten art, the son of Master Lito, Sergeant Zelos Lito!"

A loud round of applause roared. Irelia and Zelos walked into the banquet hall. Zelos gave everyone a big wave and made his way to his seat. Irelia sat at a table with all of the remaining Ionian guard, with a young man to her left while Zelos sat her right.

He scanned the room, trying to find other notable figures.

At the head table, with the Council sat Karma and Soraka. next to them, the Demacians sat with. Jarvan was closest to Karma and sat at her right. The Prince of Demacia was dressed in a surprisingly modest royal blue formal attire, Shyvana while sat his right She wore a dull gold dress that she seemed to feel incredibly embarrassed in as a dark blue tint could be seen on her cheeks. This tint apparently only grew when Jarvan leaned over to mutter some words to her. He looked like he was trying to reassure her to no avail.

Master Yi sat a table with the monkey, as well as a strange fox woman who had nine white, furry tails and long black hair. She wore a short, white kimono bordered red, which helped accentuate her sexuality. Zelos could see her fox ears twitch with every sound as she chatted away with the monkey and any man who attempted to speak with her.

The first dish that was served was a traditional fruit salad. This made Zelos scream in horror.

He backed away from the bowl placed before him, shaking and yelling as he pointed at it, "Not the children! Why the children?!"

"Chil...dren?" People murmured in confusion.

No one knew what was wrong with him. Irelia leaned over and whispered to him, "Zelos? Why are you insulting our cooks that worked so hard to cook us this excellent meal?"

He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, red bloomed on his face, "Ahhh...well...hm...How to put this..." Zelos picked up a glass of wine and tapped it with a spoon which made it ring noisily.

Irelia wanted to either bury her head into her hands, or his head into the wine glass.

Zelos cleared his throat, and started to talk, "So, I can guess you all know that I've been gone for some time. I'm not going to be partaking in this first course because fruit has forever been ruined for me." He laughed, trying to entice others to join him. It did not work. He continued, "You see, when I was shipwrecked, and when I woke up, I was on an island full of mystical women. They called themselves Dryads. Now, the thing about them, is that they were more akin to trees than to any other plant. Eating fruit, meant eating their children."

He laughed, "It didn't help that Dryads love to play tricks! When I finished eating a bunch of strawberries, a few apples, a pear or two, first time I had solid food in weeks, one of them came up to me and started screaming that I was murdering her children! Yeah, if none of you find it funny, I didn't at the time either. Apparently, male Dryads are trees, female Dryads are them. They didn't fault me for eating the fruit, oh no, that's the way animals work. They have grown to accept it, though they do not want to see me eat in front of them."

Zelos's grin grew wider, "But the other reason why I have spoken up, is because I wish to apologize now for how some of my behaviour may be. It has been a while since I've been with such esteemed and polite company in my travels, and I hope you do not bear any ill towards Ionia or the Ionian people for my actions. I am still adjusting, strangely enough, to the culture I grew up in."

He sat back down handed the bowl of fruit over to the person that sat at his left. The soldier shrugged and did not mind being given more food. Irelia leaned over to Zelos and whispered, "What did you eat before fruit?"

"Don't ask."

"But-"

"Seriously," Zelos grimaced. "Don't ask."

The next course was a simple soup, with various vegetables and tofu. It was made from fish stock. Zelos motioned to the server to come closer. He held out an empty wine glass to the man and asked, "Can you bring the bottle? I haven't had stuff this good in years. Also...a loaf of bread."

"Bread?"

"Yeap. An entire loaf."

The server nodded and walked away. Irelia nudged Zelos' side, "Bread? Why bread?"

"To eat the soup?" He raised an eyebrow.

"You have a spoon."

He picked up the utensil and waggled it about, "It feels weird though. I'm already trying not to use my hands to just dig in. C'mon, a bit of slack?"

"Even Ahri is using a spoon," Irelia replied.

The two looked over and saw Ahri essentially hold the bowl up to her face and used the spoon to shovel in any solid food from the bowl into her mouth. It was strange, she did not breath as she inhaled the soup. Wukong seemingly mimicked her, the two laughed as they motioned for seconds. Master Yi reached over and cupped the back of Wukong's head.

"...So I am allowed to do th-?"

"No."

"Oh thank the heavens. I don't think my gag reflex is that far gone."

Irelia nearly coughed up her food, and actually smiled, "That is rude."

"There we go. Finally got you smiling."

"Just, please, do not dunk the bread into the soup."

Zelos whined at her, "Can't I do once? Pleaaase? It's gonna drive me nuts otherwise."

The bread and the bottle of wine was placed before him. Irelia sighed and looked away. She gave him a wave of her hand as if to give him permission. Zelos promptly grabbed the loaf of bread, dipped it into the soup and took a voracious bite from it. Two bites and he swallowed harshly, which made his sister sigh louder.

Irelia raised a hand to her mouth. He could see that her body shuddered with a silent cough. She got up from her chair and bowed, "Excuse me, I will return shortly."

She walked away, her sword floated in tow. Zelos could see Jarvan stand up and start walked towards the presumed exit she was intending to make, followed by Shyvana becoming downcast and even more embarrassed.

The next dish was an assortment of raw fish on rice. Any kind of fish one could imagine and it was here. With Irelia not here, he simply reached down and scooped the food into his mouth with his fingers. He was very hungry.

The guards and the Ionians near him felt now was an apt time to ask him questionsm

"What did the Dryads look like?"

"How beautiful were they?"

"What happened after?!"

"How did you survive?"

"Did you find love?"

At this last question, Zelos burst out in a fit of laughter, "I was in love the whole time I was gone! With my country, my family, and my countrymen, of course! There was nothing else that mattered to me! Gimme a sec..." He took a long drink from the wine bottle and focused his attention back on the questions, "Okay, okay...The Dryads were stupidly beautiful, too hard to describe in words. I got kidnapped by a bunch of bearded guys after I tried coming home, spent nearly a decade with them, and I survived because I guess I'm pretty great!"

Another man, Kenji, asked, "Bearded guys?"

"Yeah, Lokfarans, big brutish guys. You learn quickly from them, lessons like don't share your food unless you don't want to eat it."

The people would have peppered him with more questions if the next dish was not served.

The dish afterwards was a variety of lightly fried seafood, vegetables and other light delicacies. Zelos had begun to drink his second bottle of wine, and Irelia nor Jarvan were anywhere to be seen. Well, they had taken this long, he might as well announce his decision.

He had eaten, he had drank, he mulled over the conversation Irelia and he had earlier. What did she mean by that? Did she not find someone in all of this time? Should he be concerned? That was when Jarvan and Irelia suddenly returned quietly and stealthily.

Upon closer examination, his emerald eyes focused onto the two like a hawk. A cheeky grin spread across his face as Jarvan went to sit down. He could see the shirt was slightly ruffled. He could not help but let the thoughts jump about his head, a prince and a pauper. Okay, not a pauper, but he was a bit of a poet at heart.

However, this helped confirm his suspicions: She had found someone. That meant that his initial choice was the best one. Sure she may be a bit angry at him at first, but he had to make sure she was happy. He would protect her. He shifted his body weight as he prepared to stand. Now would be the best time to announce his candidacy to join the League as a champion.

Irelia managed to take only a few steps when her eyes went wide. She spun around and quickly walked away, her shoulders quaking. If one did not know to look, they would not have seen her actions. Her sword flew to her side, as if it were waiting to give her support.

Zelos' chair screeched back as he catapulted himself over the table and towards the door, not caring of the scene he just made.

* * *

Outside the banquet hall, he looked about the trio of corridors that branched away. He was trying to figure out where she had gone, when an echoed cough could be heard. If one's ears were not sensitive, it would be nearly impossible to discern where it had come from.

Zelos ran down the hallway. He heard another cough, he could tell it was wet. Their father's sword was in sight one moment, then out of sight the next as it went around the dark corner.

He had no weapon on him save for the knife he took from the table. If someone had tried to hurt her, or if Jarvan did something... Oh man, if Jarvan did something, prince or not, it would be too bad that Zelos would have to gut him in front of everyone.

As he ran, he nearly slid across the floor from the pool of crimson that covered several tiles onto it.

'_What in the...?_'

He reached down and touched the puddle.

'_Blood...?_'

Where would she go? Where could she have gone? There was really only one place he would expect her to go to. Quickly enough, he came to the door to her room. He gripped the handle and pushed on it. It was locked.

'_Right then._'

He booted the solid wood door, only to bounce off of it.

'_Trying that again._'

He aimed at the lock and shattered it open with a strong kick. He pushed the door open and he was confronted by something he had never expected. It confirmed a few suspicions and raised dozens of more questions. He dropped the knife and his face was drained of all color. What was he looking at? What was going on? Why did it have to happen to her? Why?

All he knew was that he had come across a similar scene like this many years ago, before the war. He thought it was an isolated incident.

"...Not again...Oh no, no no, please, not again..."


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Ten minutes earlier, Irelia had gone out to get some air. She muttered angrily aloud, "Less than an hour and he's...urgh! How does he pull off that smile and be so...that?" Her sword hummed, a little vermillion energy crackled as if to show the annoyance she was experiencing.

"Lady Irelia?"

She stopped walking and looked behind her. Jarvan had caught up to her. "Is something amiss?"  
"No...yes? I don't know?" She threw her hands up, "This does not concern you, Prince. Please leave me be."

"It does concern me when I see a friend distressed," he politely replied. He motioned down one of the hallways, "I believe there is a balcony there. May we speak there?"

"Now you want to discuss political matters? Can that not wait until we are rejoined with the Council-"

Jarvan raised a hand up, "Do forgive me, I do not mean to be rude and I am aware you will probably skewer me for interrupting you, but I wish to talk to you." He pointed towards his intended destination, "May we?"

The Ionian woman sighed and nodded, "Lead the way, Prince."

"Inside the Institute, during matches, during speeches and what other formal gatherings you can think of, you have to refer to me as prince. When it is just you and I? Please, call me Jarvan," he requested.

The two walked side by side for the short distance they had to walk. Jarvan towered over Irelia, easily over six feet in height. He would easily weigh two of her, and his muscle mass was ridiculous, but even he knew better than to doubt the strength of this lithe Ionian woman.  
Once outside, Jarvan motioned to the banister. He leaned over it and stared at the dark landscape that stretched out before them.

"You discussed with Luxanna about what happened in Kalamanda."

Irelia nodded, "Yes."

"Why?"

"I was concerned. Many think you would act in such a manner, but you have matured since your induction to the League. That was not you acting."

"How can you say this for sure?"

Irelia shrugged her shoulders, "Because you would not endanger your people in such a reckless manner, not for your own personal prejudice against Swain. I know that much of you."

"But I do not remember what happened, it is all...hazy, that time. Yet if I tell you that I did not do it, you believe me?"

"Yes."

Jarvan then asked in an overly formal tone, "What do you think of Zelos?"

"He is my brother," Irelia replied. "My brother who finally came back. After all this time, he came back. I am still having a hard time believing it, and when he acts like...that, it is harder to believe."

"You value my word?"

"Yes, I do."

"He loves you, Lady Irelia," the prince firmly stated. "He was found on a glorified canoe in the middle of the Conqueror's Sea. He was near mad and barely coherent. He was screaming about birds at first, admittedly, but when one of my the crew touched him they were reportedly knocked into the ocean. The entire crew was subdued. It took an hour to bring him on board. Do you know what he was yelling the entire time?"

Irelia shook her head.

"He was yelling that he had to get home, he called them a few expletives and a few other words in foreign languages and said he would kill everyone if they stopped him from getting home. Nothing was going to stop him this time. He would not let her down, he would stop the war and he would kill everyone who got in his way," Jarvan nodded his head. "He almost killed forty men. The only reason they did not die is because they had a healer onboard, luckily. It took a lot of guesswork, and he was not particularly coherent, but eventually your name calmed him down. He loves you, Irelia, but you need to understand his position."

Jarvan pointed at the dark horizon, "He was out there, with no one. He had nothing out there. The first question that he asked me, when he regained his senses, was if I knew Irelia Lito. I said yes. He asked if you were still alive. I said yes. He burst into tears. Never, have I ever seen a man as happy as him even on their wedding day. He was alone this entire time, Irelia. You became a strong woman in all of these years, but you have had people. You have friends, comrades, associates and so forth. He? He had no one. He is a good man, he just needs some time to acclimatize back in your culture. His stories may sound glorious and his adventures amazing, but he suffered greatly."

Irelia nodded and let out a sigh, "I know, I know...I love him too. I just, I just wish he was not so...so badly affected. I really wish he just had some magical adventure bull and took so long to come back because of...I don't know, less severe reasons? Did you see his wounds? I saw his arm and some of his chest, I can only assume there are many more."

"Yes, there are."

"How bad are they?"

"Frostbite burn scars cover his chest, his stomach, and patches of his arms and his legs. The scars from bladed and piercing weapons stretch about his body, a few scars from where bone had snapped and pierced his skin, and a few bite scars from creatures that bit him. I do not think I have to mention how he managed to survive despite the severe level of dehydration he suffered from. That alone makes it a miracle that he is alive at all. He came back to Ionia, and to you. Give him time, and be patient with him. He needs you now more than ever. He may be a bit rough at first, but he will settle down soon enough."

Irelia tapped the banister, quietly reflecting on what the prince said. She replied, "I never did thank you for bringing him back."

"I think a banquet-"

"That is formal gratitude," she interrupted. She pushed away from the banister and moved towards him, "Excuse me, I'm going to be informal now."

Irelia wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged the prince of Demacia, "Thank you, Jarvan. Thank you for bringing him back. I will never be able to repay you for this."

When she pulled her head back, her bao caught onto his a button on his shirt. Irelia muttered aloud, "And this is why I don't hug people." She reached up and unlatched it from her hair. She attempted to readjust his shirt into proper order only to mess it up more.

Jarvan handed it back to her, "You should show that more often."

"What?"

"That warmth," he replied. "It suits you, Lady Irelia."

Irelia smirked at him, "I can say the same to you."

"You and I know what it is like to put an image on for people. We hold our country's safety, reputation and well being over almost everything else. That is why I hold nothing but the utmost respect for you, Lady Irelia. I am glad that I can make further amends for the transgression of Demacia during the Ionian War. It is one more of the many steps to restoring Ionia to its proper grace," Jarvan bowed towards her, a strange thing to see from a Demacian.

Irelia's smirk widened into a toothy smile, "You are a good friend and ally, Jarvan. Do not forget that."

The prince smiled back at her and nodded his head, "Same to you, Lady Irelia. Your man is certainly very lucky."

"We are not...it is complicated."

"When is life not complicated?" Jarvan shrugged. He looked out to the distance one last time before stating, "We have been out here for a while. If we stay any longer, people may get suspicious of us. Come, let us make our way back to the banquet. I think I-" A loud rumble roared out from his stomach. Jarvan coughed and sheepishly explained himself, "I think I may be a bit famished. The fruit and soup were delicious but I need a bit more...meat in my meals."

"Lead the way, Jarvan."

Jarvan started to walk ahead of Irelia when he asked, "By the by, how improper would it be for me to ask for a painting?"

"I am not sure what it is you mean."

"A painting, made by you. How improper a request would it be?"

Irelia shook her head, "For you, or for Demacia?"

"For me."

"For you? Not improper at all. Consider it as a favor for a friend."

Irelia's sword hummed behind her in response.

* * *

Upon re-entering the banquet hall, Irelia saw Zelos who was enjoying himself. He was laughing and talking with the other Ionians, and despite his somewhat brutish manners, he looked happy. She would talk with him. She took a few steps back towards her seat when her body shuddered. Irelia spun around and pressed a hand to her mouth. Something was wrong.

Irelia rushed out of the banquet hall. Her sword flew down to her side and prepared itself to catch her. Her stomach lurched. Her breathing shortened. She coughed but managed to swallow the contents of whatever she coughed up back. She could taste metal in her mouth.

Irelia took off running as quickly as she could when she had to stop yet again. She let out a wet cough which slapped the floor with a pool of blood. She pressed her hand to her mouth, trying to stem the blood that flowed from it. It dripped between her fingers. A hard swallow stemmed the flow, for now.

Soon enough, Irelia reached her room. She closed the door and locked it with a simple thought. She needed to be alone for now. She would recover from this quickly enough. She tried to control her breathing, inhale, exhale, inhale, ex-

A violet cough made her splatter her window with blood. She tried holding it to her mouth again and tried swallowing it, but it was to no avail this time. She started to cough even worse than before, barely able to stand as the blood soaked her dress and the pooled onto the floor around her.

Irelia took a breath in and tried to control her breathing once more. She closed her eyes and held onto a chair for support with one hand while she pressed her chest with her other hand. Irelia breathed in and out slowly. She did not notice the blood that started to flow from her nose. She was calm, but she could feel another surge of coughs well up from her diaphragm. She just needed to calm down and try to-

Then she heard someone try to kick her door down. Irelia looked over and winced, this was not good. She could not be seen like this. She moved to try and speak, but instead she started coughing more blood.

The door burst open. Zelos walked into her room, knife in hand. His eyes went wide when he saw the blood drenched woman.

Her body stopped quaking for a moment, she thought it finally subsided. Alas, before she could say anything, she vomited a violent torrent of blood and crumpled to the floor. Her sword, which usually floated and hummed about her, promptly clattered to the floor completely lifeless.

* * *

_A young Zelos walked down the Placidium hallway, dressed in the training clothes of the Ionian military. He hummed loudly as he made a turn and walked into a familiar room. He knocked on the door to gain the occupant's attention and grinned, "Hey dad, you busy?"_

_"Zelos?" Master Lito looked up from his desk. "Should you not be training with the others?"_

_"Eh, I'm done for the day. They couldn't keep up with me so I was asked to take a break. Figured I could get lunch with the old man at the very least."_

_Master Lito sighed, "If you call me an old man again, you're going to make me feel like a true bureaucrat."_

_"Pft, please, I've heard you say your choice words about paperwork."_

_Master Lito chuckled, "So long as you don't tell your sister those words, alright?"_

_Zelos jerked his head towards the door, "Come on, a little break won't kill you."_

_"My illness may," he retorted._

_"You? Die from a little cough? Please, you move so fast that you can stay dry during a thunderstorm. You can outrun the cough before you have to cough."_

_Master Lito shuffled over to Zelos, his movements looking painful. His sword waited for his touch. Once he touched the blade, it sprung to life and seemed to float within his hands. He used it as a glorified walking stick if anything these days. The halls were bustling with people as father and son walked in tandem._

_Zelos motioned to his father, "See? You're doing better. A bit more and I'll have to start running to keep up with you again!"_

_"Zelos..."_

_"Don't forget, you have to train Irelia and I tomorrow. She's excited to show you her progress. She's really working hard, and she hasn't seen you since last time! She can't wait to see you again, she's even hoping to have some of your red bean buns-"_

_"Zelos, do you think she would be a good heir to the Hiten style?"_

_The adolescent blinked, "Dad, really? Irelia? No, don't do that to her. Don't give her that responsi-"_

_"Do you think she would be a good heir?"_

_"...Of course she would be. She's making quicker progress than I ever have. In another year, she'll be on my level. Another year after that, she'll surpass me. You and I can see that. That's how she always been though, give her something to do and she'll not only excel at it but perfect it," he answered in a serious tone. "But don't do that to her, dad. Please don't."_

_"She will become the next heir because she wants to, Zelos. I cannot stop her path."_

_Zelos snorted, "I will not let her become the heir."_

_"Zelos, you cannot be so selfish-"_

_"She will not bear the responsibility of heir alone," Zelos snapped at his father. "You trained us both, we are both the heirs."_

_" The lineage of the Hiten style is long and ancient, Zelos. Our history is somewhat of a tragic one due to how it was once used. Our art is considered to be the epitome of sword mastery, and because of this frightening power that even I do not understand, it can have only one successor. There cannot be two."_

_Zelos laughed, "Then training two was really dumb. No, she is not going to be the successor, at least she won't be the lone successor. That is final."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_Zelos thumped his chest while grinning, " I'm her 'big bo', remember? Can't let her down that easily! She's not going to be alone in this!"_

_Master Lito smiled, "Yes, I remember...her first words. She recognized you as her brother before she recognized me as her father. I still remember that day."_

_"We're both trained to be your successor. If she is to be the heir, your successor, then I am too, and I'm going to be there for her. I know my role in life."_

_"You do? Then tell me, Zelos, what is more important: the sword, or the scabbard."_  
_"The scabbard, of course."_

_Master Lito blinked. He looked over at his son, and his smile grew wider. "...It is such a shame that you both had to be born in the same lifetime, you would have both made wondrous success-"_  
_Master Lito stopped mid sentence. His body twitched, and he vomited a violent torrent of blood onto the floor._

_"...Dad?"_

_Master Lito could no longer keep himself standing, and crumpled to the floor. His sword that usually seemed to float in his hands clattered downwards, completely lifeless._

_Zelos knelt down and tried shaking him awake, "Dad? Dad?! "_

_The adolescent looked around and started yelling, "Someone! Anyone?! Help! Get help! Do something!"_

_Any person who was nearby and had recovered from the shock of the scene started to run and follow Zelos' suggestion._

_A calloused hand reached up and grabbed Zelos' shoulder. Master Lito's breathing did not match the convulsions in his chest. Blood flowed from his nose, mouth and ears uncontrollably. He was paler than death itself, any shine in his eyes had disappeared but he struggled to live._  
_"T-tell...tell...me why..."_

_Zelos looked around, then back at his fallen father, "What? Tell you why what? Is that really a concern now?! Save your strength dad, help's on the way. Come on, a cough-"_

_It was only because Master Lito raised a hand to his mouth that he did not cover Zelos in a torrent of blood. He was not too old a man, he was in his forties yet looked fitter than most twenty year olds. He shook his head, "T-tell me why... w-why is the scabbard...m-more important th-than the sw-sword..." He took a breath in, turned to his side and vomited more blood before he pleaded once more, "Tell me why..."_

* * *

"...Not again...Oh no, no no, please, not again..."

Zelos rushed over and shook Irelia's still form. Her head rolled about listlessly, blood flowed from her mouth, nose and even from her ears. "Come on Irelia, this isn't funny, come on Irelia...wake up Irelia..."

She coughed, her sword sprang back to life and she started to breathe again, albeit harshly. She struggled to get back up, "Zel...Zelos...I'm...I'm fi..."

"Don't talk, save your strength, stay awake, I'll be right back. Promise."

Zelos tapped the side of Irelia's face and rushed out of the room. He looked down both ways and bellowed, "Is anyone here?! Anyone?! Hello?"

'_Soraka. Soraka can fix this. But...she couldn't help dad. Oh gods, is this a family sickness? Is what killed dad going to kill Irelia? Oh gods please no, please no. Please not her. Anyone but her.'_

"Anyone at all?! Are you shitting me here? No one in the hallways?! No one?! My scene wasn't enough to bring running out of concern or a, 'hey he's acting kinda weird let's send a guard at the least to make sure he's okay?!' Anyone at all?! You have got to be turning me upside down, left to right bending me over and just fu-!"

He suddenly heard footsteps. Master Yi hurriedly walked down the hallway, "Zelos, what is going on? Why did you leave like that, why is there blood on the-"

"What in the hells took you so long?! Get Soraka, get Karma, get the entire army here, I don't care! Get someone or some people who can help her!" Zelos pointed into Irelia's room, "She's sick! She needs medical care right now!"

Master Yi sighed and shook his head, "I thought she was feeling better...I thought she overcame it."

"You thought she was...You _thought_ she was feeling better?!" Zelos dashed forward and grabbed Master Yi's gi. He yelled at his friend, "This happened be-_fore_?!"

Master Yi nodded albeit too calmly, "Yes, though it was many years ago, she reassured us that she was feeling b-"

A solid right hook struck his face. Zelos proceeded to shake Master Yi violently, "Many _years_ago?! Don't you think you should have told me as soon as possible?!"

Wukong finally caught up and pointed his staff at Zelos, "Oi, drop the master and walk away, man. No need to get violent. You got Miss Swordsalot there to be concerned about."

"I'll deal with you in a second, monkey boy! Yi! What the crap?! For future reference, this isn't doing a very good job looking after Irelia! Blood everywhere equals _bad_friggin' job!"

"Zel...Zelos...enough." Irelia let out another horrid wet cough, splashing herself with more blood. She attempted to stand, her sword weakly shaking as it struggled to hold her up.

He instantly released Yi. Zelos rushed over to her, knelt down and leaned his sister down onto his lap, "Hey hey, I said don't talk, don't waste strength, just be quiet for once and relax, alright? I'm here. You'll be fine."

"I...I am fine...Let me up. You see...? This...This is what is going...going to happen. All I want...is f-for..." Irelia struggled to get up once more, "Is for you to...to be-"

"I swear to every loving god and every friggin' star if you finish that sentence as your final words I am going to double kill you! How that works is beyond me, but I'm so angry now I think can confidently ignore the _laws _of_ nature themselves_! Keep quiet and save your strength!"

Irelia smiled at him and attempted to laugh. She got out a few chuckles before she violently coughed a heap of blood onto his clothing. She winced and reached over, grabbing at the wet stain, "S-sorry...didn't..."

"At least you're laughing, that's good! I think! I'm not a doctor! Seriously, Yi, why haven't you freaking gone and grabbed...!"

Zelos looked around, and saw that Yi had disappeared. Wukong stayed behind as he looked around whistling nonchalantly. "Did he go to get Soraka?"

"Yeap."

"So here's a question, where is Akali? I thought she was supposed to be Irie's nurse."

The monkey shrugged, "No idea, guess she had Kinkou work t'do or something."

"Zelos...don't..." Irelia struggled to get up. "It's okay...I'll get up..."

He kept her pinned to his lap, "You're not moving. You're resting and relaxing and staying here. You're not moving."

Irelia convulsed again so harshly that her limbs were rocked with spasms. Her sword flew over and rested itself under her left hand in an effort to comfort her.

Zelos reached down and started brushing her hair away from her face, "Keep with me, keep with me, Irelia. Breath with me, keep your breathing steady with me: In, out. In, out. In, out. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Keep it up."

"I am not a child, Zelos," Irelia snapped, her voice returning to its former strength for a brief moment. She attempted to stand up to no avail, her legs buckled and she fell backwards. Zeloas had managed to catch her gently and rested her back on his lap, keeping her elevated.

Irelia groaned, "I...I look so pathetic...This is not...befitting."

Her brother shook his head, "No, no you don't look pathetic. You're fine. You look fine. You'll be alright, you hear me?"

A nod of her head made her body convulse once more. Blood dribbled out of her mouth. She was as pale as death now.

Wukong pulled himself away from the wall and waved at Zelos, "I'll let you know when the master gets back, kay?"

"...Thanks."

"No problem. This is gonna be really borin' though," Wukong sighed.

Zelos closed his eyes and laughed, "Alright, Irie? Listen to my voice, cause I'm just going to talk now, and I want you to listen to my voice, alright? I want you to respond."  
Irelia did not reply, her eyes were glazed over, her breathing slowed.

"I think I fell in love with Wukong, I'm going to have chimpettes with him."

She sputtered out droplets of blood and started to laugh while a look of mortification ripped across Wukong's face.

"You are...so silly sometimes..."

"Yeah I know, but if you don't respond I'm going to have to use Wuk there as the brunt of my jokes."

Irelia attempted to smile again, "F-fine...for his sake...I'll respond..."

* * *

In a few scant minutes, Master Yi brought Soraka with him.

There she saw two blood soaked siblings, Irelia laying down on Zelos' lap while he was talking about sharing certain bananas with Wukong. Wukong, to say the least, was not amused. Irelia was barely conscious but her breathing slow and steady and she nodded her head every time he asked her to acknowledge that she can hear him.

Soraka rushed over and allowed healing magic to flow from her hands. Zelos leaned Irelia towards Soraka and assured his sister was secured by Soraka's embrace. The Starchild muttered aloud, "It is getting worse...The symptoms should not have been this severe. This is-"

"Just like our dad," Zelos finished her sentence. "When did this start, Soraka?"

"Zelos, we must act quickly. I am sorry but now is not-"

"When." His voice became cold.

She had never heard him with such a tone of voice before. It was strange, it almost reminded her of Irelia. When she looked over at him, a horrified expression came across her face. She slowly replied, "...During the Battle of the Placidium."

"What happened at the Battle that could cause this? What did she contract? Did she just start showing the symptoms? Is this a family thing?"

Soraka rubbed her face, "I...I cannot explain now."

"Why not."

"Because I need to look after Irelia as quickly as I can. Send for Karma the moment the banquet is over. Zelos, you need to go back and assume Irelia's responsibility and help entertain the guests."

An obvious lie. She was hiding something from him.

Zelos grabbed Soraka's shoulder, "They can all go burn and die in a ditch. You are telling me right now what's wrong. Why-"

Irelia's sword floated in front of her, wobbling as it did. She rested herself against it, breathed in and attempted to speak, "Ionians...are not bad hosts. Please...Zelos...I don't...I don't want you..." She coughed yet again, this time just spittle. "I don't want you...to see me like this...Please..."

"I saw you choking that purple chick with blood everywhere. I don't care how you look, Irelia. I am-"

"That was duty...This is...this is..." Irelia swallowed hard. She did not want to finish her sentence.

He could see something in her eyes: She was not frightened. She had a look of acceptance. She looked like she accepted her condition, her fate whatever it was. Zelos drummed his fingers on his leg. He closed his eyes, he did not want to say yes. She could die like their father did in a moment's notice. But she asked him to do something, she asked him to do something for her. His eyes opened as he asked in a stern voice, "Do you promise that I will see you again?"

Irelia nodded her head.

"Will I see you again in this life?"

She nodded her head again.

"In that case, fine. Soraka? You, me and Karma, we're having a very, _very_long conversation about what's going on here."

Zelos pointed at Master Yi, "And you, are going to help Soraka transport Irelia to wherever she needs to go." He quickly jerked his finger over to the monkey man, "Wukong, you are going to go inside Irelia's room and you're going to block it from the inside. No one gets in or out, got it? You'll jump out the window and meet me in my room in ten minutes. After that, Wukong, you are going to help me get a new outfit for the banquet so we do not alert the guests the severity of the situation."

He stared Yi dead in his eyes as he spoke, "Tomorrow morning, Yi, you and I? We are going to talk. I want to know what happened while I was gone to the most minute detail. I want you to tell me how many damn blades of grass blown on the fourth day of the fifth month of the sixth year I was gone. Am I understood?"

Master Yi nodded, "Yes, Zelos."

Zelos looked over at Soraka, "How long will it be before Irelia is well again?"

"Maybe a few weeks, maybe a month? It matter how much damage was inflicted and how much rehabilitation is needed to repair said damage."

"Fine," Zelos nodded. He pointed at Wukong, "You, let's go" Before he went, he walked over to Irelia and kissed her forehead, "I'll see you again soon, Irie. Don't worry. I'll be there the moment you need me."

Zelos walked out of the room, livid beyond reason.

Soraka's head hung limp as she walked alongside Master Yi and the unconscious Irelia. They left her sword behind in her room. There was no reason for it currently.

"She is still alive, Soraka. Zelos and you intervened at the crux of the moment. She is saved. Why do you look as though you are in mourning?"

The Starchild looked at the fleeting figure of Zelos. She replied in a sorrowful tone, "Because I see the same cracks in his soul."

"The same cracks...? That makes no sense, Soraka. Was he afflicted by a necromancer as well? From what Olaf had told us, the Lokfarans do not utilize magic. Maybe it was the dry-"

"It was not the necromancer, Yi. Not even for Irelia. That man simply pushed the catalyst forward and made the condition become realized sooner."

Master Yi's face dropped. "I always thought it was the necromancer...What are you saying?"

"We promised her we would not tell anyone..." Soraka drew a breath in and attempted to calm herself. "But...there is a reason why there is only one successor to the Hiten style. That is all I can say without her permission."

* * *

Half an hour later, Zelos walked back into the banquet hall, dressed in the clothes of the Wuju style. He grinned wildly and stated to make his way back to his seat. As he passed by Karma, he muttered to her three words, "See me after."

He could hear murmurs of concern, of surprise. Zelos laughed and raised his hands, "Sorry about that, people! Sorry! There's nothing to be worried about, I'm back and I'm ready to eat and drink some more! Now, who wants to hear more about the sexy Dryads?"

Zelos reached over, grabbed a bottle of wine, and grinned, "Come on, come on, no need to be so stiff! It's not like someone's dying, right?"


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"...By this point, the Ionian people had all but given up. The Council came to me and told me their plan of surrendering. I was less than pleased with the idea. They asked me to disarm and to come with them, to show that we will not fight anymore. The Noxians had surrounded us with two legions worth of men. The Zaunite machinery was incoming and would arrive at teh PLacidium soon, hence why we were on such a constrained deadline. When it was time to surrender, Karma attempted to sway the people. To ask them to fight again. No one moved. They bowed their heads. Like beaten animals, they bowed their heads. Karma asked who will still fight? That is when young Irelia spoke up, saying she would."

Master Yi held a cup of steaming tea in his hand. The teapot rested at his feet, and Zelos sat next to him. They were in the Lotus Gardens, at the base of a marble fountain. Master Yi took a sip before he continued, "Her words still echo in my head. She said, 'Who are you people? Are you Ionians or are you pigs for the slaughter? Are we just cattle, waiting for the day of our death? We are Ionians! I will not be subjugated against my will! Just because they have bigger weapons and more bloodlust does not give them permission to trample over us! We are Ionians! Pick up your weapons! We are now all defending Ionia!'"

He smiled at the memory, "That was all she had to say to convince me. I left at that point of her speech to get my sword. By the time I returned, the gates started to open, the people were moving and readying to defend themselves and she was missing. Soraka was in a panic, trying to make her way through the crowd towards the opening gates. I made my way across the parapet, jumped over the wall and joined in the fray. I saw Irelia surrounded by both corpses of Noxian infantry as well as many alive and very angry soldiers. It was one against thousands. She looked sick, almost dead, though the only visible injury she sustained was a cut to her forearm. I killed those men and went off to kill more. I should have realized something more was amiss when I saw the corpse of the necromancer, but I was too focused on fighting to connect anything."

Zelos asked in a hushed tone, "What did the necromancer do?"

With complete lack of tact, Yi replied, "He killed her."

"...What."

"According to Soraka, he attempted to rip her soul out. He had only succeeded in partially doing so, but the damage was severe enough to kill her. She should not be alive. Soraka anchored her soul to her body, and through a miracle, she returned to life."

"...You let, a fourteen year old girl, fight in a war, against such numbers, and you let her die. I'm following you correctly, right?"

Yi nodded, "Yes. I did."

Zelos looked at his cup of tea, contemplating what was just said.

Yi quickly assured him, "You would not be able to beat me to death with the cup, old friend, as much as you may want to try."

"I may just strangle you. How could you let her fight? How could any of you let her fight?"

"It was her choice to. She chose to-"

"So what if she chose to? If she chose to slit the throats of every Ionian official would you let her because it was her choice?" Zelos growled. "No, you let her because it helped those idiots move to action. Did all of Ionia truly surrender?"

Master Yi closed his eyes, dejection evident in his body language, "You were not there, Zelos. If it were just the Noxians, we would have fared well. But it was also the Zaunites and even the pirates of Bilgewater joined them in their war efforts. My village..." Yi bowed his head, "I left to pursue a spotted Noxian squad, I came back and found out my master was killed. My master was killed when a Noxian platoon had found them. Despite them being Noxians, their commander had apparently given him an honorable death. My sister called her a monster. She may have had all the traits of a human, but her eyes...Her dead, amber eyes..."

'_Amber?_'

"She had no need for a weapon to fight my master with. She fought him with her bare hands. He made a deal with her: If he fought her, then her platoon would leave the village alone. If she refused, he would kill every one of her men save for her. He was an old man, but he was still strong. She agreed. Why, we are not sure. She fought my master without any weapon, and though she was almost defeated, she killed him. She warned the village that if they did not move, more Noxians were sure to come. She had apparently kept her bargain. I chased after her and her squadron, I wanted to know how, where, and truthfully? I wanted to avenge my master. If it were not for my narrow mindedness, I may have been able to save my village. When I returned...no one was alive. Not one soul. The damage done? No one dares go to the area, in case they are poisoned by the toxins that now plague that land. That was what we were against. I wanted to continue fighting, but I was told Ionia will surrender or we would all die and suffer the same fate as my family. I was blinded by anger, by rage, at myself and at them. I failed my promise."

Zelos continued to laugh as he shook his head, "Alright, so you had it rough, I get it. So you couldn't fulfil your promise really. Tell me this: do you know why she is sick?"

"Soraka said one thing that made me worry."

"Oh?"

Yi nodded, "I spoke to Soraka for a bit last night. She said that though she was not able to speak of it, she felt it would be improper without Irelia's permission, she did say one thing. She said that is why there was only one heir to that of the Hiten style. It was more than just tradition as to why only one successor has to be chosen."

Zelos looked over at Yi, as if he were attempting to drill into Yi's skull by his glare. The man shook his head, "I do not know what it is. I did not even know that Irelia was suffering from the same illness as your father. My master said that the philosophy of Wuju is exactly that, a philosophy. That is why it can be taught to someone who uses a blade, or someone who uses a staff, to someone who uses their fists. Anyone can learn Wuju, and it is meant to be shared with all. The Hiten style has a single successor because of how powerful, how deadly it is. The Hiten style, The Flying Heaven art, the Sovereign slayer."

Master Yi stroked his wispy beard as he spoke, "One thing I never associated, was the fact that my master knew your father, and your grandfather..."

"So?"

"As well as your great grandfather."

Zelos raised an eyebrow, "So your master was really, really old. Your point?"

"He was eighty four years old when he died."

"...That's...that's still pretty old..." Zelos tried to poorly justify.

"Old enough to know four generations of Hiten users, including you?"

Zelos fell quiet. He eventually asked, "Did they all suffer from the same sickness?"

"I am not sure of that, but I do know that none of them lived to be more than sixty. He was talking about how time goes on, how people die and the next generation come along. It was a conversation we had many years ago, when I was young. We were discussing about the fragility of life. He was your great grandfather's age, he knew his son, and his son's son, and now his son's son's son and daughter. They had all died of natural causes. Awake one day, dead the next. Your father's sickness, though undiagnosed, was not unnatural. It was not magically induced nor did the flesh itself seem to wither." Yi sipped at his tea again, "I realized this last night speaking with Soraka. I also realized that there had not been more than one child to the Hiten lineage prior to you and Irelia. Humor me, recall the history of the Hiten to the best of your knowledge."

Zelos shrugged as he replied,

"Dad used to tell it thus: The first Sovereign of Ionia was powerful, almost a god upon Runeterra, but he still needed someone to guard him as he grew older. A competition was held, to find who was worthy to guard the Sovereign. A man with a strange weapon emerged. He had defeated everyone save for his own brother, a man who had trained his entire life to become a weapon and utilized both light and shadow chi in his technique. He dubbed this the Silver Fang art. In all practicality, it should have easily trumped the other brother's technique. Despite this, the two fought for a week to a standstill. No victor could be claimed."

Zelos downed his cup of tea in a single gulp, then reached down to pour himself another cup. Once he had done so, he continued the story,

"In order to see who was more worthy, the two brothers were asked to fight the First Sovereign himself. The Silver Fang brother was defeated soundly. The other brother, with the strange weapon? He defeated the First Sovereign. When asked why he could not defeat his brother, the man said that he could not harm his own flesh and blood. This caused a feud for many centuries. When asked what his technique was, he claimed that in order to touch a god, one must transcend their flesh for flesh is weak. To transcend flesh, one must have the willpower and belief to do so. When one has done that, one can fly. When one flies, they can touch the heavens themselves. This is the Flying Heaven art, or Hiten style. Until the fall of the Sovereigns, all Hiten heirs protected the line of Sovereigns until they fell prey to corruption, greed and other vices. A Hiten practitioner guarded the First Sovereign, a Hiten practitioner killed the last Sovereign." Zelos rolled his eyes in annoyance, "What's the point? You heard this story almost as much as I have."

"Notice what you said? 'When asked what his technique was, he claimed that in order to touch a god, one must transcend their flesh for flesh is weak. To transcend flesh, one must have the willpower and belief to do so. When one has done that, one can fly. When one flies, they can touch the heavens themselves.' What is the price of such a power, to be able to oppose a god?"

"Eh?" Zelos shook his head, "It's a story, a myth. The Sovereigns were mortal. It's not about opposing gods it was more of a way to show how awesome and strong the H-"

"What is the price of having the power to fight a god when you are just a mortal, when you are just human?"

"Ah..." Zelos shook his head again, trying to think of a response. He mockingly replied, "I don't know? That seems to be a fairly redundant question since there are no gods to fight. At least dad didn't tell us when he went out to slay gods on his day to day life. 'Hey kids I got some fruit, picked up some meat and slew the twenty headed dragon god of super ultimate power.'"

"Yet he performed superhuman techniques, such as staying dry in the heart of a thunderstorm. How many mortals can fathom to do such a thing?"

Zelos smiled at the memory as he recalled it, "I remember that day. It was his final test before he could join the Council. He was asked what he was willing to do to serve Ionia. He said that for Ionia, he would make the impossible possible, if he was asked to. The Council did not know what he meant, and he told them that next time it rains, he will stand on the roof of our house, and he will not be touched by a drop. He will not move, nor will he use magic or anything but his own speed and skill to avoid the raindrops. We watched him go up, his face was marked so we knew it was him, and his thoughts could be heard the entire time."

"And that is a normal feat for a mortal? Zelos, how did you survive?"

"Me? I was really lucky and determined. I wanted to live. Should I question fate?"

"And others do not want to live? Let me rephrase this. Irelia only truly started to participate in the war at the Battle of Placidium. At that battle, she killed more than a cohort of men with your father's sword, and single handedly fell a Zaunite tank with just a single blade. She is able to forge literal swords out of her chi and is able to make as many as she wishes with just a thought. After that battle, the war lasted only a few more months. Irelia went on to kill not one, but two legions worth of Noxians and Zaunites herself. She has the blood of thousands on her hands. The last time she was wounded during the war was at the Battle of Placidium. During the battle and afterwards, no foreign weapon could come close to her. Many weapons rebelled against their masters in an impossible manner." Yi shook his head, "How did you survive for not just a day, but possibly a week in freezing water? How did you not succumb to dehydration? What other feats have you performed and not told us? How much luck can you possibly have?"

Zelos drummed his fingers together. He slowly asked, "What are you saying, Yi?"

"Soraka said she can see the same cracks in your soul. Your father suffered from a strange illness, Irelia is suffering from something similar...I am not sure what I am saying. I am mostly inferring. I cannot say for sure what this means, but I am worried, old friend, for your health, and hers."

'_She knows._'

Zelos shot Yi a smile, "So, quick question, Yi. Do you know why Irelia is in the League, then?'

"She wishes to defend Ionia."

Zelos let out a burst of laughter before asking, "So what if she wants to defend Ionia? Why let her continue fighting? You could have stopped her and it seems a lot of this could have been avoided it seems."

"Because we failed her. The Southern provinces were under Noxian control even after they had left. Soraka and I joined the League so we could try and win them back. We lost," Yi admitted. "Irelia felt betrayed by us. She believed only she can take back Ionia. Without you, responsibility fell on her shoulders. No one else could step in and take Ionia back, according to her. She trained, she became a champion of the League, and she wanted to win those provinces back. We almost managed to dissuade her, thanks to Master Lee Sin's sacrifice, but the people...they begged her to fight for them. The people of Ionia begged her. So, she complied with their wishes. She would not let them down. She saved them once, she will save them again."

Zelos muttered, "To save a country is not an act of a person, but that of a hero, of myth..."

"Yet..."

"Yet? Yet what?"

Yi admitted, "Yet, Irelia is limited in the League. Severely so. She was allowed to join the League on the condition that the Summoners do not let her use her full potential. They have had to drag her back bit by bit to assure that she would not exert herself. I never thought of why before, but now it makes sense. Even her sword stops her from fighting too hard. She may suffer mortal wounds, but we know she is able to recover from them due to the Battle of Placidium. Your father's sword itself stops her from fighting any further once it has deemed she should fall when a normal person would fall. I thought it was for her training, but the more I think about it..."

"That makes me feel _so_ much better. She impales herself to stop her from fighting. That doesn't add credibility to the _why you still let fight_ question I asked!"

"Despite her training, despite all of this, she did not fight in that match." Yi let out a harsh breath, "She was surprised and attacked by the beastman of Ionia. He took her place and won the match. She was taken away by Karma and Soraka, similar to this time, but I never put any thought into it until now. I-"

"Enough," Zelos barked. He threw his cup away and stood to his feet, "I have two more questions. One, what is the name of this beastman, and two, who was it that destroyed your village?"

Yi drew back in surprise, "Udyr, and why?"

"Aside from the fact that you did not reply with she's dead it's not a problem? Because you said amber eyes. Call me paranoid, but tell me what the chances of meeting a amber eyed woman, with a non-Ionian accent, the other day is. Riven, I think is her name? A very distinct word with its etymology in Noxian language? I assumed she's a foreigner displaced by war or something. There is also the fact that you have not yet corrected me which only adds more substance to my credibility. I gave her the benefit of the doubt. So let's stop insulting my intelligence and have you explain how she is friends with Irelia when she wronged you so badly, and why you haven't killed her."

Yi winced as he spoke. He was surprised at Zelos' thought process. "Because despite the wrongs she perpetrated on me, the Ionian people and Irelia, she is trying to make am-"

"Wait, she wronged Irelia?"

Yi went dead quiet. He had misspoken.

"What did she do to Irelia, Yi? You better tell me now or I find out when I meet her."

"...She was the commander of the extermination squad that destroyed your village."

Zelos blinked several times. He put his hands to his face and screamed into them. He lowered his hands from his face and yelled at Yi. While he yelled at Yi, the master could not help but notice the strange glint in Zelos' eyes. He was not angry, not truly angry. It was something else.

"Did you all get stupid while I was gone?! Does this sickness make Irelia slowly more retarded or something? Is Riven some sort of witch that has cast you all under her spell? Why isn't she dead?!"

"It-"

"No!" Zelos roared. "No excuses! I'm going to go right now, find this beastman, kill him and then go to Riven, kill _her_, and anyone who tries to stop me? I will _kill _them! Noxians that are lingering about and are thinking of looking at her improperly? They're next! Apparently I'm needed to come back to try and fix all this shit that you guys seemingly skipped over! All I have gathered from this conversation is that Ionia let Irelia wither and to become this thing! All I hear is that it's all of Ionia's fault for being such sniveling little-"

"Do not insult me or the people, Zelos."

"What should I do, congratulate you on the job well done? Here you go!" Zelos gave Yi a mocking clap while he spoke, "You're a bigger failure than me! You let your own family die not because of duty, so you don't even have that shitty excuse to hide behind like I do, but out of your own anger! Congratulations! One thing, all I asked you is one thing: to look after my sister! The very people she is supposed to protect send her out to her death! You let her fight, Soraka at least tried to not let her fight but she joined the League anyways, Akali I am going to have to slap, and all of Ionia? From what you told me? All I understand is that Ionia deserved to burn!"

"You are overstepping your boundaries, _Zelos_." Yi warned. He got to his feet and stared at his friend threateningly.

"What country thinks it's a good idea to let a little girl like her fight?! What in the hells is wrong with such a country? Did none of you value courage over life? Did it take an adolescent to show you what courage is? If she died then what would you have all done? Would you have still surrendered? Even _you_ gave up, Yi, or else you would not have stopped fighting! She's not a hero, Yi! She's not a _fucking_ hero! This is not a story where you go and slay the god of all that is evil and bad, she was made into a martyr! You all would have cried if she died, but would any of you cared?! You would have kept her image up and everything, oh sure, but did you all forget that she's just a little girl?! What would you have done if she gave everything she has? She was asked to give her life for the people, to lend her power, to do everything for them! Do they deserve it? I don't think so! She's only human, like the rest of us! You want to know what I learned in my travels, Yi, what my traveling and all of my stupidity taught me?!"

Zelos started to shake, "I learned that a man, that a hero, or however you want to categorize them, is only someone who knows they are free to be who they want to be! I wanted to come back to Ionia! I wanted to come back to Irelia! There, I'm a hero! She should not have become the heir to the Hiten style! She should have found a nice beau, she should be planning a family and whatever else! She should be happy! And what do I hear? I hear she was forced to play roles she never wanted to! I asked her to defend Ionia while I was gone, but at what cost? Her life?! I would rather you all burn than she become this...this...whatever she is now!"

Zelos waved Yi off, "We're done here. I'm going to town. I need a drink stiffer than tea."

"Zelos, you should not r-"

"Fuck off," he calmly replied, his entire angry demeanor now completely washed away. Zelos shot his friend a smile, "We'll talk when I'm in a better mood, alright? Apparently I gotta go and make things right. First a drink, then a sword, then it begins."

With that, Zelos walked away from his friend. Yi sighed and moved to go after Zelos.

"I would not do that if I were you," Akali said. The green clad ninja stepped out from behind the fountain. "I will take it from here," Akali firmly stated.

"Is this what the Kinkou want-"

"No," Akali shook her head. "This is what I need to do. He wishes to act this way? Fine. Let him try acting this way."

With that, she disappeared in a puff of smoke. Master Yi sighed, gathered up the tea, and shook his head. Zelos was not angry. Not truly angry, oh no. He was scared. Yi could see it, for a split second. He could see the fear in Zelos' eyes. Yi could have said many a thing, but how could he fault a man who was terrified of losing his sister?

Unfortunately for Zelos, Yi was not a truly benevolent person. After all, why else would he let Akali go without word of protest?


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Sixth bottle. He was on his sixth bottle of rice wine. Zelos polished off the bottle and sighed, this was getting him nowhere. It was almost like water to him. After experiencing what the Lokfarans call alcohol on such a constant basis, this drink definitely tasted better, but it felt like water. Lokfaran ale was almost like a stew, and the alcohol content was much higher. Ionian rice wine definitely tasted like water to him. A young couple walked by him, a young man and a young woman hand in hand. He did not give them any notice. He simply reached down at the weapon that was still bundled in a sackcloth.

Admittedly, he had gone to the blacksmith first to get a sword before drinking. His original intention was to drink first, true, but the blacksmith looked inviting. He looked battle worn, scarred. He was someone that Zelos liked from the get go, he had to buy a weapon from him. It was a fairly simple sword, a black cord that wrapped the hilt, a thin blade that emphasized speed, it was single edged and about thirty eight inches total in length. It almost felt strange to hold a proper sword again, almost alien. Lokfarans did not allow him to have a weapon, since he was technically a slave. He learned how to make do without a weapon. He did not need one, but he felt it would be needed for what he needed to do.

Zelos motioned to the server for another bottle. It was a strange habit he developed, he needed to do something to keep himself occupied and he saw no reason to not make that activity drinking. He was not drinking out of depression, he was drinking because this was when he could think without being troubled. He either had absolutely no time alone in his travels or was abysmally alone when he was alone. And during those alone times? The memories came back.

At least some alcohol would help him be in a social setting and not have to worry about those memories...and then he looked at their faces. Their smiling faces. The people around him laughing, drinking, eating, all happy, all content with their lives. He could see parent with child, elderly couples hand in hand, he saw two young lovers giggling incessantly in the corner of the room. How dare they. The thoughts were coming back. None of them cared, none of them cared about her, about her well being. Hell, did they care about their own country? They all let a young girl fight for them, die for them, and when she needed respite? They asked for her to fight for them again. Did they really give a damn? No, they didn't. None of them did.

Zelos looked at the young couple again. With a scowl, he reached down for the hilt of his sword when a hand stopped him from drawing it out.

"No."

Zelos scowled and looked up at the owner of the green clad hand. Akali's eyes pierced into his. He could see if he pursued this path, they would have trouble.

"The hell do you want?"

"What do you think you are doing?"

"Drinking."

"I can see that. Why go for the weapon?"

Zelos motioned with his chin at the young couple, "They're pissing me off."

"You have had enough to drink. Have you eaten?"

"If I ate something I'd spend all of my money here trying to get anywhere with the drinks."

"You are eating something."

Zelos snorted, "Go back to the Kinkou, leave me alone. Your duty to them is more important than to your family, I get it. Go be the Fist of Shadow or Shin of Twilight or whatever and leave me alone, alright? I got this under control."

His next bottle of rice wine came. He reached for it when it suddenly disappeared from his grasp. Akali's face mask was pulled down, and the bottle was placed on the table, completely emptied.

"What the...?"

"You are going to eat something."

Zelos grinned as another bottle was handed to him, "Good thing I ordered tw-"

The bottle disappeared again. The empty bottle was placed on the table while Akali wiped her mouth with her index finger, flicking a droplet of alcohol away. "I can do this as many times as is required."

"No, you can't. The Kinkou is going to ask you to go stick your head in the dirt and you're gonna follow the orders. Balance in all things, right?"

"I am on duty no matter where I go or what I do."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning if you do not get food in you this instant then you are going to have a problem." Akali reached over at the server's plate and grabbed a bowl of noodles from him. She flicked a glance at the young server and sharply said, "Thank you."

She placed it in front of Zelos and motioned to him to eat.

Zelos let out a chuckle and shook his head, "Tch, you went soft. You never threatened when you were young, you just did it. So! Congrats on your dream if becoming the Fist of Shadow! Where were you the other day? Why weren't you there with Irelia?"

"Because I cannot be with her every hour every day, Zelos. I do have my own life to live. If duty calls, duty calls. Irelia understands that. That is why when we came to the Placidium this morning and found out what happened, I requested for today off. She is being looked after by Soraka and Karma, I am going to watch you today so you do not do anything overly rash."

"Do you know she's sick?"

"Yes."

"Do you know what she's sick with?"

"She is afflicted with your father's illness. There is no cure, only treatment."

Zelos slammed his hands on the table and yelled at the ninja, "The hell is wrong with you then?! You know what she's sick with yet you let her do...all this? Why aren't you doing stuff to help her aside from dressing up like a overly tarted up prostitute?!"

Surprisingly, Akali did not react. She let the insult fly by. "It is not my place to say. It is her choice. There is only so much I can do that will not conflict with my duty or my own personal morals."

"So it's alright if she chooses to? What if she chose to eat babies?!"

Akali raised an eyebrow, her tone incredulous, "Are you honestly comparing your sister's sickness and her duty to the people of Ionia to that of cannibalism?"

"What? No! I said what if, not...That!"

Akali rolled her eyes, "Fine. If she ate children, would I allow her to do so? No. I would kill her."

Zelos's face went red. He reached for his sword once again.

"That is not the answer you wanted?"

"You would kill her!"

"Yes, I would. I would stop her from being someone she obviously is not because she has gone completely and utterly insane and the only way to ease her suffering would be to kill her," Akali replied, with just a hint of sarcasm in her tone. She then asked presumptuously, "Are you ready to have a serious conversation instead of throwing accusations about and attempting the usage of argumentative fallacies or will you continue being an angry little boy?"

Zelos threw his hand up at her, "Well that sure is going to get me talking! The hell are you here for anyways, Akali?"

"I want to talk to you and explain the situation as best as I can. However, you are angry. You should eat."

He angrily snorted, condescension thick in his tone, "Oh gee, sure, I'll eat and then we'll discuss how much you gone and f-"

"I would eat quickly," Akali advised. She pointed at the door, "You do not have much time."

"For what?"

"He will be here in less than a minute. I asked him to come for you."

Zelos raised an eyebrow. The noodles were almost inhaled as he emptied the bowl. "Who are you talking about?" He got up from his seat and cricked his neck. He tossed his sword up and down, "Whatever. I got other things to do. I need to fight this schlub you sent to fight me, then find this Udyr guy first and kill him, then go for the rest of the list."

"Why do you want to fight him, Zelos? I thought you did not want your sister to fight, he stopped her from fighting in that match. I do not see the logic here."

"He hurt her. He hurt my little sister. He's gotta pay." Zelos nearly snarled saying this. "And I'm insulted that you got someone else to do your dirty work for you. You used to be much better than that."

Akali shrugged , "I am simply granting what you what you wished for. You are overreacting and I would watch out behind you."

Zelos spun around and faced the stone wall. He sighed and muttered aloud, "And I thought you didn't gain a sense of humor, Ak-"

A hand tore through the stone wall, tearing half of it down, and gripped his face.

"You reek of cheap alcohol, anger, and stupidity. This will be a short fight."

The hand ripped Zelos through the wall and outside the restaurant. Akali put her hands behind her back, and calmly stepped through the gaping hole in the establishment. No one else seemed particularly surprised or shocked, as if this were a normal occurrence to them.

* * *

Zelos was catapulted through the air. He roughly landed and rolled away from the source of the grip. Despite the bruises on his face, he did not feel any sort of pain, nor did he feel the pain from his shoulders being dislocated due to being pulled through a stone wall. He popped his arms back into place, gripped his sword and looked for his opponent. Once he spotted him, he called out, "Who the hell are you?"

The man was not much taller than Zelos, though his muscle mass warranted him to be a force to be reckoned with. Not a single glamor muscle tainted his body, he was sculpted and massive to be as strong and practical as he can be. He wore a black gi and hakama with a large, crimson bear print on its front, the symbol of the Hirana monk order. He was thoroughly tanned, his thick, black beard covered most of his face save for his blue eyes, and on his head he wore a bear pelt that draped itself across his shoulders and down his back and effectively hid his hair. Various monk beads were decorated around his neck and wrists.

The beastial man cricked his bones, his tone gruff as he replied, "We are Udyr."

Zelos grinned, "Udyr, eh? I was looking for you. You saved me the trouble, thanks."

The beastman half heartedly motioned to Zelos to make the first strike to which he obliged.

He rushed at the beastman and swung in a diagonal arc, cutting at Udyr's neck. Udyr casually reached up and allowed the blade to strike the palm of his hand. For normal men, it would have sliced their hand in half and continued on to the throat, effectively kiling them. For Udyr? Zelos felt like he had just tried to cut a block of steel in half, the metal vibrating in his grip. He surprisingly still held onto his sword despite the vibrations that would make most others lose their grip.

Udyr gripped the blade and promptly snapped it in half. He threw the broken metal to the ground and cracked his knuckles. That was his only tell that he would strike.

The punch that was thrown was too fast for Zelos to register as it lifted him up and through the air. His body skipped off the ground and rolled several feet before he stopped.

"What will you do now?" Udyr growled. "Will you falter already or will you fight?"

The beastman thundered towards Zelos, his footsteps imprinting the ground with every step. Zelos got to his feet and threw his broken sword away. He charged at Udyr and punched the burly man's jaw.

Udyr took the blow with ease and snapped his head backwards to help minimize the impact. He stepped forward and with a sweeping motion struck Zelos' side with a backfist. This sent the man airborne once more.

"Are you ready to discuss and talk like a civilized man, or do you want to try that again?" Akali calmly asked as she watched Zelos fly by her.

Zelos did not show any sign of pain once he landed. He got back to his feet once more, shook his head and muttered aloud, "I'm going to carve you a new asshole, asshole."

Udyr looked around at the gathering crowd. He let out a beastial roar at the people, which sent them running. He focused once more at his incoming opponent.

Zelos rushed at Udyr and was sent head over heels into a building. It was embarrassing to watch as Zelos tried again and again only to be disarmed and thrown to the dirt.

Fifteen minutes of this repetitive fight later, Udyr finally asked, "Why are you trying so hard? You are too weak. We could kill you at our leisure."

Zelos was not giving up. He was half crazed at this point, and once again he rushed at Udyr, fists raised. The beast man slammed his angry opponent to the ground and pinned him by pressing his foot on Zelos' back.

"Why rush to your death so earnestly? Where is your skill? Your are clouded, angry, unsure. A child would fight better than you currently."

"The moment I get up I'm carving your gods damned kidneys out," Zelos snarled. He writhed underneath the foot, attempting to free himself.

"If you are to die, at least tell us why you wish to die so quickly."

Zelos grinned as he planted his hands on the ground. He started to lift Udyr off of him as he replied in a half manic tone, "_You_ think you can kill _me_? I'm not letting Irie down again, never again! I'm going to get up and rip out your fucking heart!"

"Hm, berserker," Udyr calmly observed. "A Lokfaran? Freljordian? You look Ionian. Your scent and accent match your appearance. Not the point. Who is Irie and why should we care?"

Zelos craned his neck upwards, "You should care because I'm going to kill you for hurting her, for making her fight, for making her something she shouldn't have become!" A strange light glinted in his eyes. "It's your fault, all of your faults! You all let her get sick! You all watched her race to her death! You're just the first on the list!"

"How is any of that our fault? We ask once more, who is this Irie?"

"Irie is short for Irelia, his sister," Akali answered.

"So this _is_her brother? We were not mistaken? That is embarrassing," Udyr said. He pointed downwards at the man trapped underneath his foot, stating flatly, "She deserves more than this idiot."

"I agree!" Zelos snapped. "She deserves so much more! She should be happy! She should have a family! She shouldn't have to fight! She shouldn't have to push herself like this! She shouldn't be sick but none of you care! None of you care!"

"Do you care about her?"

"Are you deaf or just stupid?!"

The beast man pressed his foot downwards, increasing the pressure on the trapped man's rib cage. "Quiet yourself and listen. She spared us once, and now we will repay her by sparing her kinsman. We owe her that much respect," Udyr stated with a grunt. "We would prefer her to hate us and keep the memory she has of you than see what you have reduced yourself to. Are we understood?"

Zelos let out a primal yell before he finally gave up, slumping to the dirt ground in defeat.

Udyr lifted his foot off of the man and snorted, "Get up, face us with your back straight and listen to what we have to say."

Akali walked over and helped Zelos to his feet with a hard pull upwards on his shoulder. She helped dust her cousin's clothing off while the beast man spoke,

"Do you care for her, yes or no?"

Zelos rolled his eyes, "Are you r-"

A sound punch cracked him in the nose, making Zelos reel back.

Udyr asked again, "Yes or no."

"Gah! Nyes!" He rubbed at his broken nose, the blood pouring out from it. It was more uncomfortable than painful for him.

"Then you suffer the same weakness as her," Udyr replied. He raised a finger, silencing the angry man so he could continue. "She cares not just about you. She cares about the people of Ionia, she has those she calls friends, and she is willing to completely and utterly slaughter those who dare infringe upon their freedoms at the cost of her own life, of her own humanity. That is a part of who Irelia is now-"

"No...It isn't," Zelos shook his head. "How dare you say such a thing? That's not Irelia." His voice raised sharply as he yelled, "That's _not_Irelia! That's not who she should be!"

Udyr let out a guttural sigh. He raised his arm up and showed the deep scar that seemingly bisected his forearm. His tone denoted his boredom as he asked, "You seem very sure of this. Who is Irelia, then?"

"Irelia, Irelia is...Ha ha" Zelos shook his head, his tone going wild from emotion,

"Irelia is...She's just...she's creative! She's artistic! She painted! She got into woodcarving before she ever picked up a sword! She's got this sorta dry sense of humor but always screws it up because her eyes light up! She's a gentle girl with a fiery heart! She sang! In the name of the heavens, her singing brought in everyone from the village to listen to a little girl! She loved poetry, she saw the beauty in the Hiten style rather the brutal practicality! She used to ask father to train her so she can try and be like me, because I had a grace she was admittedly jealous of! She loved to watch me spar with father so she could paint the scenes and try and mimic them for her own practice! She saw the beauty in everything!"

He rubbed his face in an attempt to calm himself, "And now...now she's killed _thousands_of people? She associates with the very butcher of our village?! I see her mounting and choking a bitch and hear her speak with...with, with such anger? Such hatred?! That's who Irelia is now? That's who you all let her become?! She's willing to kill-"

"Stop," Udyr palmed his face. "This annoys us. You are so..."

"So what? Stupid? Ignorant? What? What is it?!"

"Emotional," Udyr replied. He pointed at Zelos as he spoke, "You remember her as she once was, but who has she become now? Were you ever aware of her feelings? Are you aware of how she views herself? Stop speaking of what she used to be and what you expected her to become, because that is all you are spewing. She should have been this, she should have done that, she did not. Answer us this, sibling of her's, how do you view her _now_?"

"I...I don't know," Zelos shrugged. "I...I see traces of her, but then I see her choke some idiot and then choke on her own blood and..."

"Do you know why we harmed her? Let us start from that point." Udyr snorted, his tone growing in condescension, "We attacked her for our own reason and she nearly slaughtered us. If she were not so ridiculous and had shed all forms of mercy, she would have slain us then and there. You know this because of our fight: You are slower, you are weaker, you are less skilled than we. You cannot fathom to defeat us in this lifetime. Truthfully, neither could Irelia, yet she did. She defeated us. How is that possible?"

Zelos did not respond, unsure if he should.

He guessed right as Udyr continued, "Have you ever considered what Irelia was surrounded by? Death. From the moment she was born. What we say now is us paraphrasing what she had said to us. Your mother died due to Irelia's birth, your father died when she was not even an adolescent, you left and were presumed dead two years after the death of your father, and then she was sent headfirst into a war. She experienced your village burning down and could not protect it. She was useless. She was too weak to do anything."

Udyr's eyes tightened as he spoke in a domineering, yet even tone of voice, "At which point in her life did she want something which would not fly away from her grasp? She wanted a mother, she is dead. She wanted her father to train her, he died. She wanted you to stay, _you_left. She wanted to live in her village in peace, it was burned down. She wanted revenge on the woman she held accountable, she failed."

Akali spoke up, "I have failed, and failed, and failed in my lifetime. I have only failed, then I finally succeeded in something. I succeeded in protecting those I love, those I care for, my people, my friends."

Udyr pointed a finger at Akali and gave her an acknowledging grunt before speaking, "Those are Irelia's words. Irelia said those to us as she pinned us to the ground. She thought all of Ionia rested on her shoulders, because the first time she felt she succeeded at something, truly succeeded? It was at that battle. In order to regain the Southern provinces, she would have to fight, and then she would not only secure Ionia, but her success would be complete. We knocked her unconscious and took her place so she would not have to bear such a responsibility."

The beast man balled his hand into a fist, his knuckles cracked from his strong grip, one he held in front of him as he spoke, "That responsibility is not for her. She is a human, she is a person, who has dreams and aspirations, but placed them secondary so long as Ionia was in danger, so long as she felt inadequate. Someone of her stature, of her power, of her willpower, does not deserve such a terrible fate. We agree with you, she does deserve more. Then there are those who are not willing to fight for themselves. These worms will look to others who will do so for them. When you stop fighting for yourself, and start fighting for others, how long would it take until you forget the reason as to why you ever fought in the first place?"

Zelos was unsure how to respond. He just shook his head in a dumb manner.

Udyr nodded his head, "She defeated us, her better in every way, to make sure she would not fail. She did not. We helped ease her burden because she is emotional, unlike us, and more like you."

"If she had fought in that battle..." Akali spoke up once more. "Then she would have lost her humanity. She would have become essentially the tool of the people. She would have truly become a martyr figure for the people, to be used and abused. Instead of being the voice of the people, she would become the tool of the people. That is the second reason as to why the Triumvirate stepped in. She is as unique as the weapon she wields. To have either tarnished, would be an upset to the Balance. Irelia was able to sway the people in an impossible manner. What would happen if she turned to something worse than wanting to regain Ionia back?"

The ninja leaned towards Zelos, "The people had moved her to action with their pleas. What if her want for more acceptance, for more success, to help rebuild Ionia developed into something far worse due to the horribleness that is the mob idea? What if she were fueled by revenge because of the mob? Or greed? She was giving the signs, especially with how angry she was during the war itself. A very little known fact is what happened at the end of the Placidium battle. I was not there, and it is not my place to relate it, but ask Soraka why the wood charm you made for her is cracked. Ask her what happened, and what Irelia asked for."

Udyr looked over at Akali and growled, "Are we done here? We have training we wish to."

"Yes, thank you Udyr for coming," the ninja acknowledged.

Udyr suddenly reached over, and before Zelos could protest, the beast man promptly snapped his right arm's humerus and radius bones.

"Frickin' hell!" Zelos' cry of pain was akin to receiving a bruise rather than two severe fractures. He angrily bellowed, "The hell's that for?!"

"Those are serious fractures," Akali acknowledged, running her deft fingers along his arm.

Udyr answered, "You will not be able to fight with such wounds ergo you will not be able to do anything too foolhardy. Under healing supervision, it will take at least a week for your arm to fully recover."

Udyr turned around and started to walk away.

"Hey!"

The beast man let out another sigh, "What?"

"Why did you do any of this? Why not kill me and yadda yadda bullcrap?"

"The Fist of Shadows asked if we wished to repay Irelia. We agreed," Udyr replied. "We had expected someone who was equal status to her at most, or at least would have provided us a good fight. Unfortunately, because of all of your slacking and galavanting adventures-"

"I was not slacking or galavanting! I spent more than a decade in sheer unrelenting hellish amounts of pain! I thoroughly did not enjoy freezing water, crazy plant women, starvation, dehydration, large muscular violent men who essentially enslaved me, another bout of starvation and oh more dehydration and obscene amounts of loneliness!" Zelos spat.

"You mean the same amount of hellish pain that could have been easily avoided? Why did you leave in the first place?" Udyr looked back at Zelos, eyebrow raised and answered his own question, "Because someone told you to. Because you did not have the spine to say no, you want to stay. You blame everyone else, when all it would have taken was a bit more spine from you and a little less pride. All you had to say, was no."

The beast man shrugged,

"But there is a reason why the past is called the past: It has already happened. Why focus on what was when one should look at what is and what will be? Accept it and move on. We shall tell you one thing, wayward one, in regards to what is: Despite having killed so many people, despite her might, her strength, her fervor, whatever you want to call it, she still owns the weakness of tears. Find out what you want from life before trying to make an ass of yourself again. Maybe when you are less clouded in thought, you will be able to provide a better challenge."

Udyr rumbled away out of the town, leaving Akali and Zelos behind.

Akali made a quick comment, "That went better than I thought. I thought he would have shattered a few more bones."

Zelos did not reply. He simply bowed his head and shrugged his shoulders. He felt her hand pat his good shoulder, "Where is your usual cheer?"

"I can't feel my arm. You can stop patronizing me any time now, Akali."

"I am not patronizing you," Akali replied. "You and Irelia are really the only people who have been able to make me genuinely laugh. I honestly did what I could for Irelia. When your village was destroyed, my village sheltered her. I asked my mother to look after her better than a daughter because I had been inducted into the Kinkou. The night of the fight with Udyr, I left the bandages on the footsteps to the Institute. I was tasked with assuring the fight between her and Udyr was kept death free, of either of their deaths. During the war I did what I could, but my duty had to come first. There were other internal strifes that had to be taken care of during the war. I wanted to do more, but I could not upset the Balance, I could not go against my duty."

Akali turned around and lifted up her hair, showing the writhing dragon tattoo between her shoulder blades, colored the same emerald as her eyes. "I am bound to the Kinkou and to the position of the Fist of Shadow. That is my duty until I am a mother and become the matriarch of the Silver Fang clan. Even then, until my position is passed on, I will be the Fist of Shadow. I was envious of your upbringing under your father. I love my mother, but she is cold. She desired nothing less than perfection. I was envious of you two. When he died, I saw you care for Irelia more than my mother had ever cared for me. You kept that happiness, that joking attitude, you took on the pain of losing both parents and made sure Irelia did not succumb to the sorrow of it."

It was strange to hear her tone to be anything but its usual sternness as the ninja continued, "You were a great brother to her. You left not only for duty, but to try and cut the war off as quickly as possible. Your village did not succumb for several months. You would have been back in time if not for circumstances beyond your control. You should not spend the time you have left with her so full of anger. You were a good brother, and a good man. You still are."

Zelos chuckled and shook his head, "...How do you know such a thing is still true?"

"She prayed every single night to the stars for your return. Every. Single. Night. I have seen her relieved, I have seen her at peace, but I have not seen her so happy in a very, very long time. Does this mean you are a good man still? No." Akali then lowered her hair, her tone turned more somber, "But even I can hope once in a while ." She lowered her hair, turned around and glared at Zelos, "When I see you acting like a complete idiot I assure you I will drag you back in line and push you down the right hill if I have to. We are going back to the Placidium, you are recovering, and you are apologizing to Master Yi for your rudeness."

Zelos rotated his arm and continued to shake his head. His tone carried a morbid ring to it, "Y'know...It's strange to hear you say so much bull. What that Udders guy said? Most of that is true. I don't know who Irelia is now, maybe...maybe she doesn't need me anymore. I'm just trying to catch up on lost time, y'know? I don't know...am I helping?"

"Instead of trying to kill people, instead of adding more death to her short life, try and find what you can do to help emphasize it."

"Akali...what is wrong with her?"

The ninja related whatever information she knew, "It is a similar sickness that afflicted your father, and it has something to do with the soul rather than the physical body as the recent discoveries by the Starchild and the Duchess have revealed. That is all I am allowed to say."

"That name again, Riven...I don't get it still. Why her?" Before he could mull over that thought, something else clicked. "The soul...to touch the heavens, one must transcend flesh. Wait, allowed to say?"

"Essentially so," Akali acknowledged. "That is what I am allowed to say of her condition and I will not disrespect that. As silly as it may seem to you, there is a level of confidentiality that I must respect for her and for everyone. If they do not wish for me to speak it, I will not speak it unless it is a threat to the Balance itself. She has accepted her fate, and I have accepted it as well. If she wishes to speak of it with you, it is her responsibility to you as a sister."

Something clicked in Zelos' head. A look of realization washed across his face.

"...Akali, when can I see Soraka, or Karma?"

"Not until they are finished with Irelia's rehabilitation. Not even the League can summon her or them during this time, it is a clause in her contract."

Zelos motioned to Akali with a grin on his face. His broken arm flopped about uselessly as he spoke, "Well, lead the way then, oh wise and mighty striker of things that are dark."

They started to walk down a dirt road that led out of the town in silence.

Within a minute, Zelos suddenly spoke up, "So...This wasn't your duty, was it? How did this help serve the balance in any way?"

"I have a duty towards family as well. My inner balance is as important as the Balance of everything else. If something upsets it, I must either cut it out or have it repaired. Stay in the line of Balance so I do not have to make that choice."

Zelos grinned, "You weren't off duty, were you?"

"I am always on duty, Zelos. Such matters cannot interfere with Kinkou matters and I am not the Eye of Twilight nor the Heart of the Tempest. I must walk the thin line between rationality and emotion myself, I cannot falter in my du..."

Zelos started to snicker childishly.

"What do you find humorous about this?"

"You're always on duty."

Akali glared daggers at him. She raised her fist and punched his broken arm, which really only served to further break his arm. He yelped and grabbed at where she struck, grinning all the while.

Akali rolled her eyes and sighed, "You are still an ass hat."

"...Did you just call me an ass hat?"

"Yes. Yes I did."

Zelos laughed as he floppped his broken arm about some more, showing his incredible pain threshold, "Does this remind you of a puppet or is it just me? I feel like I should be yelling yaaaay or something."

Akali let out a snort, and despite her best efforts, started to laugh, "Stop that, you can cause irreparable damage to your flesh if you continue to do that."

"Meh, we got healers. It's not the end of the world."

The two cousins walked side by side back to the Placidium. From the top of a homestead within the village, A blue blur and a purple blur appeared and disappeared in a blink of the eye. They had seen all they needed to see.


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The day after Zelos came back to the Placidium, he went and asked the scribes of the Placidium to give him all death records in regards to the Hiten successors, and if there were any other records in regards to them. He managed to find thirteen generations, including his father. In thirteen generations of Hiten successors, only two died before fifty. Five of them lived well into their seventies, who all died of natural causes, though it was only the furthest back in the ancestral line that had managed to do so. One died as early as twenty five, his great, great grandfather. His death was the most thoroughly noted for two reasons: One being that his death was due to the Kinkou taking action. Secondly it was because he did not die until his head was cut off, despite the rest of his body having been dismembered.

There was no other case of this sickness that afflicted his father or currently afflicted Irelia. On the other hand, in thirteen generations of Hiten successors, their father died at the earliest age of forty two years of a "disease" no one knew how to cure. Not even Soraka could help him...but how then could she treat Irelia? He would have to ask her about that directly.

After this, he looked at the cause of death. In thirteen generations, only one died apparently due to decapitation. The other twelve? Died due to natural causes, even their father. Their father was one of the few people in Ionia who allowed an autopsy to be performed post mortem, to help try and decipher what it was that ailed him. His organs resembled that of a geriatric rather than a man his age, it had no traces of being magically induced. For all intensive purposes, it was natural.

Next came the death records of their spouses. The oldest one of them lived was his great grandmother, who died when she was eighty years old. The youngest to die was surprisingly not his mother, who died when she was only thirty one years of age, but the wife of the decapitated successor. She died when she was Irelia's age due to a bandit attack.

The birth records showed that they had a child before their deaths, meaning the art of the Hiten style was barely salvaged and saved by their great grandfather. The birth records also showed that in thirteen generations of Hiten successors, none of them had a sibling. Strange coincidence.

That was all he could decipher from those sets of records before he was dragged away by a slightly irate team of nurses. They had been taught by Akali to use sharp instruments to persuade unruly guests to stay in bed. It was successful for the most part, luckily for them.

Luckily for Zelos, today, there was only one nurse to try and stop him.

"Zelos, sir, what are you doing out of your room?!" a woman's panicked voice called out. She was dressed in white robes, which denoted her status as one of the many official healers employed at the Placidium.

"I'm bored!" He replied out in a whiny tone. "I'm fine now! I got stuff to do, sooo...Later!"

"Sir, you had several blood clots in your shattered arm from waving it around! It's a miracle you're not dead! Please, rest and-"

Zelos shrugged his shoulders, "Eh, it was _totally _worth it!"

"Go back to bed!"

"Pft, I'm fine! I've had worse!" He looked back at the exasperated woman and gave her a grin, a flirting wink and a wave as he walked down the hallway, "Later, beautiful!" When his sleeve fell back, one could see the hideous scars that danced up his arm.

He could not stay in place if his life depended on it, not since his time with those Dryads. Those horrible, horrible, although beautiful, Dryads...

Zelos shook the memory of the Dryads out of his mind and made his way to Irelia's room. He pushed the door open and walked in. They had not fixed the door's lock, but they had cleaned the mess and unbarred the door. The room was spotless. The only thing that seemed out of place in the room was their father's sword that rested on the wall. He dragged a chair in front of the weapon, sat on it, and stared at the sword. Today was the day he decided to try and decipher its secret.

The sword was lifeless. It was dull. The crimson gem in the center of the weapon seemed darker than blood. How did it move like it did in Irelia's hands? How did it do what it did? He could not figure it out. How did Irelia do it? Was he actually no longer worthy to be the heir? How did she do it? How?

He reached over and touched the sword. It did not react. The coldness of the blade surprisingly permeated throughout his fingertips. He thought he could no longer feel the cold, but the sword gave him the same feeling of absence he felt during his voyage.

What was the secret, to bring the sword to life? It looked unwieldy for it had no true hilt to grasp onto. How did she do it? How did his father do it?

The only thing that came to Zelos' mind was that before their mother's death, he did not remember the sword moving the way it did post mortem. Before she died, his father carried it in his hands, albeit awkwardly, but he carried it. Zelos rapped his knuckles on the dull ruby heart. He could not help but note that the crystal was only a bit larger than his fist.

After she had died, the sword seemed to take a life of its own. It seemed almost like an organic, living thing in his father's hands. It would blitz and crackle with energy, and the two seemed to speak to one another in an unspoken language. Their father always carried the sword with him wherever...he...went.

That was when a question dawned on Zelos to ask no one in particular.

"...Where is the scabbard?"

Zelos looked about the sword every which way. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that the blade had no sheath. He had never seen one worn by his father nor was there one ever produced that he could remember. No sheath, but not a single scratch or blemish tarnished the ornate sword.

"...Is it the user?"

"Sir?"

Zelos looked behind him. A young man, a guard, stood at the mouth of the ajar door. Zelos waved at him, "'Sup?"

"Ah...well... I saw Ire...I-I mean the captain's room opened and I thought maybe she came back. I wanted to make sure she's alright, she's missed a week of training with the rest of us. We're worried."

"Ah don't fret," Zelos laughed. "Your capt will be back soon!"

"I hope so. I want to see h...Er, we want her to be back soon."

"Can't agree more with you."

Zelos fell quiet, looked over behind him and stared at the now flushed man. "How well do you know Irelia?"

"Sir?"

"Come on, how well do you know her?" Zelos asked again.

"She's my captain, our captain. She's my friend, she's our friend. She's-"

"I was asking your opinion, buddy. Come on, no need to be shy!"

"...she can be harsh, commanding, she has a serious demeanor about her but see her in a good mood and, well...she starts singing." The guard started to smile dumbly, "Her singing just...nothing else matters, y'know? She reminds you what in life is worth fighting for. We just...hope for the best. She hates worrying us, but then she disappears and...we...worry sometimes."

"Would you do anything for her?"

"In a heartbeat, sir." The guard answered with absolute confidence.

Zelos nodded, his tone cordial, "Same. You're a good one, y'know that? What's your name?"

"Private Himura, sir."

"Himura, we're getting a drink when she comes back, in honor of her good health. 'Kay?"

"Yes sir. I...we just worry at times. Do forgive me, I mean us." The guard bowed and disappeared. His footsteps echoed in the hallway.

Zelos looked at the sword once more. He tapped it and sighed. He had no idea what to do. He decided to go for a walk, see where it would take him.

* * *

When Zelos walked outside to the courtyard of the Placidium, the glittering armor of Jarvan caught his eye. The prince of Demacia was still here at the Placidium? The prince was sitting on a bench outside, apparently staring wistfully at the skies. His lance rested on the bench within his reach.

"Oi, Jarv? What are you doing here?"

"Mm?" Jarvan muttered in a tired voice. He had his eyes closed. He looked over in the direction of Zelos without opening his eyes. "Meditating. I am here for another week or so. I needed to relax."

"Yeah, sure, 'meditating'," Zelos laughed. "Not asleep. Something bothering you?"

"Shyvana left today."

"Shyvana? Your guard?" Zelos looked around as if he were expecting to find her, "Where'd she go?"

"The Hirana monastery with that flea bitten... Excuse me, with Udyr."

"Udyr?" Zelos raised an eyebrow, "Isn't he...y'know, a bit old for her? Isn't that kinda-"

Jarvan's eyes opened. He looked over at Zelos with a disgusted look on his face, "What?! Her and...No! That's...no! I would skewer him before that thought could pierce his brain! She went to visit the Hirana monastery for training purposes and he escorted her! He is some sort of...master to her or something. Not sure how, seeing as he's an arrogant, egotistical, conceited...do forgive me, I am rambling."

"Uh huh," Zelos nodded, not paying full attention.

"And she did not wish for me to come with her, for I have responsibilities I still need to attend to here at the Placidium, which is true."

"Mhm."

"So I am taking a moment to meditate. When she returns I should be done with everything, and then I will return to Demacia."

"So you're not staying out of concern for Irelia?"

"Concern for Irelia? Why should I be concerned?" He looked over at Zelos, "You said we should not be concerned at the banquet, yes?"

"Yeah?"

"As a general all purpose not to be concerned, yes?"

"Yyyyeah?"

"Then I trust your word," the prince replied. "I may not have seen her for a few days, but if there was something amiss, why would it be kept secret? You would not do something that would be detrimental to your sister."

"Well, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, right?" Zelos laughed.

Jarvan did not seem particularly amused by this transparent half joke. "I know that all too well."

"Eh, it's nothing to fret about!" Zelos laughed once more. He clapped Jarvan's shoulder, "Have fun 'meditating', alright? And for what it's worth...thanks for bringing me home."

The prince nodded, "You are welcome, Zelos. It was worth it to see her smile." He closed his eyes and went back to his meditation.

Zelos walked out through the gate and started to head Southwards.

Jarvan, on the other hand, sat on the bench. Between work, festivities, worrying about Shyvana and all of the restoration efforts and the bureaucracy behind it, he certainly needed the rest.

* * *

As Zelos walked, the thoughts of his family's lineage, Irelia, and their father's sword raced through his mind. He was not sure what to do, he had nothing else he could do, he would have to sit and wait for Irelia to return before he could piece any more of the puzzle together. What was he to do? That was when an idea dawned on him, perhaps he should see that Riven woman and...talk to her. About stuff. He was walking southwards incidentally anyways, why not kill two birds with one stone? But what stuff would he talk ask her? Well, destroying their village was a definite question to ask, but what else?

Perhaps she was to blame for Irelia's current state? Maybe she wasn't? He had to speak with her, although truthfully he was not sure what to talk about. What should he ask? Should he kill her? If Irelia hadn't yet, then why should he? First thing's first, he would have to speak with her again. She was polite last time, she was helpful, and in all honesty, he would not have suspected her if it were not for Yi. Her eyes were not killers. Now, Irelia's? When that Syndra woman was in her grip? Hers were.

Zelos pondered and spoke aloud to himself, "You know who I am, so why the...No, that won't work. I want to know why you killed everyone and why I shouldn't kill you aand I already get into violence. Ah, pft...Should I be blunt? Maybe I should be cordial at first and then go into the questions, does she deserve that? Maybe I should..."

He stopped in his tracks and slapped his forehead, "Oh hells, I should bring a sword just in case! Argh! And I've been walking for hours and it's all the way there and...ahhh damn it all. That is so annoying. And I just realized she said the Navori province. What am I going to do, walk to every village and go, 'Is a woman named Riven here? No? Next one!' Oh gee Zelos, you are a genius amongst men! Your intellect is unfathomable! What's your next brilliant plan?"

Before he could degrade himself any further or make a concrete decision, Zelos spotted someone down the dirt path he was walking. The man seemed to be aimlessly wandering about, from this distance Zelos could make him out to be some sort of monk. He called out to the man, "Hey, buddy! You okay? You lost or something?"

The man looked over at Zelos' direction. Zelos could swear he saw an orange bandage wrapped around his eyes, but otherwise he could not make out much else. The man waved at Zelos and started walking closer towards him. Zelos decided to help close the distance quicker and stepped towards the apparently blind man who had a strangely sure step to his stride. Once close enough, Zelos could fully

The man was dressed in the colors and some of the robes of the Shojin monastery monks. His dark, ivy pants, the white and orange bandages that wrapped around his ankles and bare arms resembled that of the Shojin monks, even his belt and his shoes, but he was bare chested. His bare chest showed muscles that seemed to groan with every breath he took. Even then, he looked completely at ease. His chest had long, black, intricate tattoos that flowed along his muscles and his skin. One could see the tattoos snaked down past his waist, where they ended one could only assume that path, while other tattoos could be seen on his shoulders and uncovered biceps. Even the man's head had some of these markings on his right side. His head was shaved save for a single braid of hair that wrapped itself around his neck several times. The only other hair on his body was the finely trimmed goatee on his face. Last, but not least, his blindfold was orange. In its center a brooch was neatly pinned, from it a small, smooth sapphire hung. This brooch was usually worn only by the master of the Shojin monks.

Zelos waved, out of habit, at the man as he asked, "You lost, sir?"

"Me? No. Are you?" Despite his voice being masculine, it was gentle, soothing even.

"Me? No, I'm not lost. I just figured, well...you're blind," Zelos replied. "You need help?"

"Do I?"

Zelos sighed, "And now you're being cryptic. Wonderful. It's yes or no, man. I don't have all day."

The monk replied in his calm tone, "No, I am not lost. I may not be where I want to be, but I can see that I am where I need to be. What is your name, sir?"

"You're not where...Ah, it's Lito. Zelos Lito," he quickly replied. "You're not where you want to be? Where do you want to be?"

"Why, home of course," the man chuckled. "I would like to be home, but I should go to the Placidium first. Am I walking the right path?"

"Yeah, you are."

"Excellent, I did not mean to trouble you. Have a good day, sir," the monk replied. He suddenly started walking southwards.

"Hey?" Zelos blinked in confusion, processing the fact that the monk was walking the opposite direction. "Hey! That's the wrong way!"

"It is?" The blind monk 'looked' over at Zelos, "How so?"

"The Placidium is north!" Zelos pointed to emphasize his statement.

"This is not north?"

"Are...right, you're blind," Zelos groaned. "You're not making this easier on me, y'know that?"

"The man with eyes said to the man who can see. What troubles you? Where are you going?"

"Nowhere, really."

"Nowhere?"

"Yeah, just thinking. Why?"

The monk smiled at Zelos, "What are you thinking of? Perhaps I could be of help."

"Nah..." Zelos shook his head, "I'll be fine. I can figure things out myself."

"Mm? How well has it worked so far?"

Zelos stopped and thought for a bit. He winced as the memories went through his head. "...So you want to go to the Placidium?"

"I see no reason not to."

"Alright, I'll take you there. You won't mind me talking about my woes?"

The monk softly laughed. It was a warm, comforting laugh. "Not at all. Everyone is troubled by something sometimes, no one is immune to it."

"Yeah, you're right," Zelos admitted. "I mean hell, it's not like I'm b...uh..."

"Would you like to know how I became blind?"

"...Will it make this conversation less awkward?"

"Absolutely. It is nothing to be ashamed of for me to retell."

"Alright, in that case, let's go...er..." Zelos palmed his face at his sudden realization. He forgot to do even the most basic of courtesies. "I forgot to ask your name. That's not rude of me. What's your name?"

"I am Lee Sin. Come, let us walk," the monk pointed northwards, as though he knew where he had been going the entire time. "Tell me who you are, and why you are distraught, and I shall tell you who I am, and why I wear these bandages."

* * *

Author's Note: I got really sick last week and I've been mostly useless. I've got a lot of things to catch up on in terms of school, writing this story and writing other stories, as well as planning for more stories out of the butt, but I will be caught up sooner rather than later! Sorry about the wait!


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

_Many years ago_

"Zelos. It has been long enough. We will talk now."

The stern voice could be heard outside a door. The door was simplistic: It was a sliding door, with a wooden frame and a beige paper body that had a few, colorful flowers painted upon it.  
"No!" A young boy yelled from within a closed room. "I hate her!"

"We have been over this-"

"I hate her!"

"Zelos. You will come out here and you will apologize, to her, for what you said."

"No!"

Within the room, young Zelos paced up and down, fuming. He had done so for the past hour. He honestly thought that woman was going to take Irelia away. She had come over for that, right? So he made a mistake, did it matter that much? That baby killed his mom. It didn't matter.

He hated her.

"You do not understand what hatred is."

"I hate her!"

"No. You do not."

Young Zelos' door slid to one side, revealing a young, but recognizable Master Lito. He was dressed in flowing robes which easily hid his figure, his black hair was tied up by a ponytail, his face was clean shaven and spotless, save for the bags under his eyes from fatigue. His green eyes that stared at the young boy were neither warm nor cold. "You are not doing this. You and I will have words."

Zelos turned away in a huff. He stared at the wall and crossed his arms angrily.

"Zelos. You are her brother."

"No I'm not! She's dumb!"

Lito walked over and grabbed a fistful of the young boy's hair. He lifted Zelos off the ground and carried him out of the room.

Zelos knew better than to kick and scream. He closed his eyes from the pain he was feeling and did his best to quietly hold it in, letting out only the occasional whimper. Lito walked through the hallways, opened another door, and carried his son into this new room with him.

The room was simple, almost bare. There was a chair, a bookcase filled with books, and a few children's toys and stuffed animals carefully laid in a chest. A square window around shoulder height allowed the rays of the noon sun shine in. In the center of the room was a cradle. Within the cradle, a rose colored blanket with a sleeping baby girl could be seen.

Lito quietly lowered Zelos to the ground in front of the cradle. He pointed at the sleeping baby, and with a calm, unwavering voice, just barely a whisper, he said, "That is your sister. You are her brother."

Zelos frowned and was about to look away when he felt his father's hand clasp his head, keeping the little boy's face in place.

"Look at her and tell her you hate her."

He moved the young boy towards the cradle.

Zelos leaned over the ledge and stared at the little bundle. He wanted to say he hated her, he did, but...He could not.

With a soft sniffle, Zelos said in a morose tone, "I want mom back..." He was only seconds from bawling his eyes out.

"I do too, Zelos. I miss her already. I miss her with all of my heart, and all of my soul. But that, is life. I am going to die, you are going to die, even little Irelia here is going to die. We are all going to die, one day."

On that note, Lito led the dumbstruck Zelos out of the room. He walked his son to the kitchen, where a little modest, wooden table was. To the left of the table was a sink, with a polished metal faucet, as well as a few cupboards and drawers. Various knives and cutting boards could be seen littering the wall near the sink. The stove was an old block of black cast iron. Burnt and blackened wood visible from the stove's small door that was ajar. it

Lito motioned to Zelos to have a seat at the table while he started the fire in the stove. The father opened the cupboard and took out a teapot and two cups. He walked over to the sink, quietly filled the pot with water, and placed it on top of the stove. The cups were a dark, mottled brown that seemed to be handcrafted. Both had a carefully engraved surface, one cup had the depiction of various birds while the other had large tigers.

"Dad...?" The young boy nervously spoke. He was still in some shock from what his father had said.

"Yes, Zelos?"

"Am...am I going to die?"

"Yes. You will. Everyone dies," Lito calmly replied. "But not before me. I will die long before you or little Irelia. Do you understand what that means?"

Zelos shook his head, sniffling. Lito looked over and shook a finger at the young boy, chastising him, "Do not cry. Tears will do nothing."

Lito smoothed his hair back and rested himself against a nearby counter. He stayed there for a few moments before walking over to the table and seated himself across from his son. He brought with him the cup depicting the birds.

"Zelos, I miss your mother as well. I love her, even now. I gave you this week to be angry, to lament, to try and get it out of your system, but you are still angry. That is enough. Do you know who Irelia is?"

Zelos' answer was him casting his eye downwards, not saying a word.

"She is your sister. She is your family. When I die, all you will have left is your family, Zelos. Like your mother, when I die, I will not be here in this realm. I will be in your heart, in your mind, and in your soul, but I will not be here. In this world, there is no one else you should trust more than your own flesh and blood. When I die, you and Irelia will continue living. You can hate her, I cannot stop you, but what will it do? Do you understand what hatred is?"

Zelos nodded, "Is when you dislike somethin'."

"No. That is not hatred. Hatred is all consuming, all _burning_." Lito slid the cup towards Zelos. "Pick that up."

Zelos picked up the cup.

"Smash it."

Zelos blinked. He looked at his father somewhat bewildered at such an idea. "But...mum...mum made this."

"For you. Yes, she did. Destroy it."

"I..."

"Do it."

Zelos violently shook his head and put the cup back on the table. He knew he was going against his father's wishes, and he would be willing to take the punishment for it. Instead of being punished, he felt a comforting hand ruffle his hair.

"Why did you not destroy the cup?"

"Because mum made it. I don' wanna..."

"Hatred destroys everything you love and care about. Hatred is all consuming, it does not leave time for thought, for consequence. You simply act like an animal. Hatred is something you can never truly control, as it will control you. It twists thoughts, corrupts the heart, and brings forth a side of you that you never thought possible. Once something is destroyed, it is a much harder task to put piece it back together than to have never broken it in the first place. Your mother made Irelia, for you, for me, and for her."

Lito got up from his seat and made his way back to the cupboard. He took out another cup. It was also a mottled brown, but had irelia flowers decorated upon it, creating a stark contrast between the dark brown and the white and pink colors. "Your mother had a feeling that we were going to have a daughter, and before she died, she made Irelia this cup. Your mother wanted us to all to be happy. Your mother wanted us to be a family. We are all like these cups, Zelos. Remember that for as long as you live."

Lito took out another cup. His face contorted into a smile as he reminisced. The cup in his hand had a simple heart on it. That was it, that was all that decorated the cup, a single heart. "I will die one day, Zelos. Who then will Irelia have, if she does not have you? You are her family, she is your family. You will have many responsibilities, son. You are the heir to the Hiten style. It will give you strength. What then, is the point of strength? For some, it is to build strong families. For others, it is to make works of art. There are many reasons to have strength, and everyone needs a reason to not only have it, but a purpose to use it for. What purpose is this?"

He rotated the cup in his hand, a tear streaming down his face. "You are too young to know the answer yet. I do not expect you to reply to this question for many years. I do not, however, want you to hate something so soon. You will understand when the time comes. For now, do not harm what your mother died to give us. Do not hate your sister. That would hurt your mother far worse than death."

A series of knocks on the door interrupted his thoughts. Lito wiped at his face, making sure he was out of Zelos' line of sight, and brushed away the single tear that trailed down his cheek. He placed the cup back in its place.

They could hear a woman, the wet nurse, speak up, "H-hello? Who are-"

A gruff voice could be heard, "Xiang. Where is he."

Zelos looked over at his father. He was slightly confused. "Grandpa? Grandpa's here?"

"Zelos. Go to Irelia's room and stay there. Watch after your sister."

"But-"

"Zelos. Go now."

Zelos slowly complied, got up and shuffled away. Lito stared at the stove, seeing the steam escape the mouth of the pot. He took the pot off the stove, and placed it on the table. He grabbed the cups and quickly placed them back into the cupboard. With that, he made his way to the front door.

Zelos entered the room Irelia was kept in. He grabbed the chair, dragged it next to Irelia. He could not hear them for almost the entire duration of their conversation. He sat in that room for easily an hour, staring at the sleeping, still form of the baby. Her blanket barely raised up and down with every quiet breath she took. He remembered his mother telling him how loud and wild of a baby he was, refusing to sleep and attempted to run before he even knew how to walk. From what he had been told, they were supposed to be loud, annoying things.

Irelia was not.

The young boy's train of thought was completely destroyed as a loud, resounding boom echoed through the house. It sounded as though wood was splintered, stone shattered. The window in Irelia's room shook and she woke up screaming.

Zelos covered his ears, wincing at the sound of the baby's shrill shrieks. He looked around and tried finding something to placate her with. He grabbed the closest toy to him, a stuffed bunny, and wildly flopped it about. "Look! Bunny! Stop screaming!"

Irelia continued her shrieks, her little face red with anger, fear and confusion.

Zelos looked around once more, trying to find something else to help calm her down. He reached down into the cradle and clumsily picked up the baby. He glared at her as he pleaded, "Please please pleaaaase stop screaming."

Irelia stopped screaming. Her head seemed to be rolling backwards, so Zelos reached around and gave it the proper support it needed. The baby girl giggled and with her tiny hands, attempted to grab Zelos' nose. Her green eyes shimmered with delight.

Zelos was not exactly sure how to react, except by giggling back at the baby and extending his finger out to her hands. Her tiny fingers wrapped around his finger and shook it about happily while she made soft, gurgling noises.

A calloused hand reached up at the window, not seen by either of the children. It had a thin, glass cutting tool in the palm of his hand. As it moved to press it on the glass, the hand disappeared. This was followed by a sound that resembled the crack of lightning.

Irelia, however, did not react to this frightening noise. She snuggled herself closer to the young boy's chest and fell asleep once more in seconds.

* * *

_Six years later_

Irelia sat at a desk in her pitch dark room. Three candles were her only source of light, aside from the moon that shone through her window, and sat within reaching distance from her. She held a small block of wood in one hand, which was bandaged, and a carving knife in the other. Her hand shook as she attempted to shave off a piece of the wood, her small fingers not quite strong enough yet to do such a feat easily.

The knife nearly slipped. She managed to keep a steady hold on it, and turned it about. Irelia spoke to the knife, "We can do this, you and I. Right? You want to."

She resumed her wood carving.

Unbeknownst to her, a mysterious figure started to sneak up on her. The moment she flicked the knife upwards, cutting another shaving of wood, a pair of hands clamped themselves around her eyes.

"Whatcha doin', Irie?"

Irelia dropped the knife and held the block of wood to her chest, as if trying to hide it.

"What's that, hm?" Zelos peered over the top of her head, curiosity lit in his eyes. "Is it something evil? Do I have to tell dad you're hiding a super evil in your room? Or maybe you're keeping it in a box?"

"Go away!" Irelia sounded panicked. She did not want her surprise to be ruined. "It's not done!"

"What's not done? What are you..." Zelos' trailed off, his eyes narrowed. He reached down and prodded her bandaged hand, "Hey, what happened, Irie? Did you cut yourself? How'd you do that?"

Irelia paused, trying to think of a reply. She eventually said in a cautious tone, "It wasn't my fault."

"Eh?"

"It wasn't my fault. The other knife didn't want to carve."

"...Carve what?"

Irelia looked around. Her lips quivered as she tried thinking of a perfectly sound and reasonable lie. She did not want to ruin the surprise. "...Nothing...?"

"You tryin' to carve the air then?" Zelos laughed and pinched his younger sister's cheeks. He pulled at them while he said, "Come on, you can tell me."

"The other knife didn't want to carve. This one does."

"Irie, knives can't talk."

"It's not talking. It's just..." Irelia tilted her head, unsure how to explain herself. "It's what it wants."

"And what do you want, Irie? What do you wanna do with the knife?"

"...I don't want to ruin the surprise."

Zelos sighed. He leaned on top of Irelia's head, making her support the adolescent boy to the best of her ability. Luckily he was smaller than the other boys his age or else she would have fallen flat on her face. "What's the surprise, Irie?"

"...You...you know the test you're going to have to do?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I..." Irelia raised the block of wood into view. More than a quarter of it had been shaved into a semi smooth, circular shape. "I'm making you a good luck charm."

Zelos could not help but smile. He tapped the edge of the block, "Irie, you don't have t-"

"I want to!" She looked up, barely able to meet her brother's eyes due to him leaning on her. "Even if I'm not there, I want to make sure you know I'm there! I want to make sure you know that I'm there with you, so you don't have to be nervous!" Irelia's eyes and her tone of voice gave her a strange sense conviction, not usually seen in most six year old girls. Although, considering what happened a few days ago, it was not so strange a sight to see from her.

Zelos' smile widened. He pulled back the side of Irelia's mouth, showing that most of her baby teeth were missing. "I know you're in my corner, Irie. You don't have to hurt yourself tryin' to do something you're not good at-"

"I'm doing this. I want to do this." The young girl waggled the knife to and fro, "It wants to help me do this. I can do this now. I...I just, I want to make sure you'll be alright Zelos."

Zelos reached over and took the knife from her. He turned it about and examined it. Nothing special screamed at him about the knife. He spoke to it, "Oi, you. Yeah, you. You're helping Irie do this, alright? If you hurt her, I'll throw ya into the river. Got it, buddy?"

He handed the knife back to Irelia and rubbed the top of her head, messing her ordered hair up. She sputtered and glared at him, "Zelly! Don't do that!"

"Oh relax, you look better this way anyways!" He pulled her hair upwards and with two fistfuls of her hair, made a pair of makeshift horns for her. "See? Now you resemble your true form: a demon!"

Irelia put the wood and the knife on the desk, slid away from his hands and out of the chair. Once she was able to close the distance, she started playfully punching his side ever so slightly. Her knuckles barely touched the side of his stomach, but did so in such quick succession it caused a strange, tickling sensation.

"Gah! No! Stop it!" Zelos giggled uncontrollably.

"You will fall before the tender fist!"

Irelia kept up these almost feather light punches, which playfully drove her brother away from her chair and desk.

"I-ha ha! I can't- ha ha ha! Stop it! I - ha ha- I can't-"

"Give up!"

"Never!"

Zelos weaved around one of her punches as it slowly came forward. He flanked her from behind and picked her off her feet, suspending her in midair. "Gotcha!"

Irelia playfully kicked her legs as his fingers started to tickle her sides mercilessly. "Gah-ha-ha! St-stop that Zelly!"

"Give up!"

"N-n-no!"

Zelos dropped her to the floor. Before Irelia could touch the ground, he had caught her under her arms and kept her from slapping the wood underneath. He swayed her back and forth as though he were performing a ballroom dance. She swayed to and fro, not in complete control of her actions. He sang his next command at her. "Ir~el~ee~ah, Ir~el~ee~ah, you~can~give~uuup!~"

The little girl laughed and giggled, "I-I call a tie! I call a tie!" That was all she would concede.

Zelos put Irelia to the ground and vigorously mussed her hair about. "I can live with that! Come on, it's not bad to admit defeat! We all lose sometimes!"

Irelia laughed and smiled at her brother. "I can never beat you, Zelos. The most I can ever hope for is a tie."

"Pft, please, you'll be kicking my butt in a year tops."

Zelos looked over at the desk, silently thinking of something.

"Hey Irie?"

Irelia was still calming down from her fit of laughter. She looked up at Zelos, still giggling, "Y-yeah, hee hee, yeah Zelly?"

"When it's time for you to do the admittance test, I'll make a charm for you too. Alright?"

Irelia's smile widened. She tilted her head at Zelos, "You think I'll be good enough to do the test? You're one of the youngest to-"

"Because I'm awesome," Zelos interrupted. He mussed her hair up one more time before replying in a soft tone, "And by association, that makes you awesome, got it? You'll pass the scholar tests easily, and the combat tests you'll be fine! We'll be training at the Placidum together to kick butt in no time!"

Irelia nodded and started to walk back to her desk. She picked up the carving knife and stared at it for several moments. "The knife wants you to use it when you need to. It thinks its a good idea."

"Hey, if even knives like me then I have nothing to worry about!" Zelos laughed and left Irelia's room before he stopped and slapped his forehead. "Oi! That's right! I almost forgot! Why I came here! Dad-"

"Had requested for the both of you to come to the dining room, and is slightly perturbed that neither of you are there as of yet."

Master Lito's voice froze both Zelos and Irelia in place. He was standing at the door, arms crossed and and looking overly angry. His sword seemed to rest against the opposite side of him, as though it were mimicking his very posture. The bags under his eyes were the only sign of fatigue as he walked into the room with a youthful spring in his step. "What has taken you two so long?"

"Just...messing around, dad."

"Mhm. I see. Just 'messing around'."

Lito stared at his two children, his knitted brow and his glare able to melt ice from the sheer intensity that exuded from him. This intensity disappeared the moment he broke into a smile and motioned to them, "Dinner is ready. Come, before it grows any colder. Do not forget that you both need to wake at the crack of dawn. The later the dinner, the more chance that it will cause indigestion."

Their father walked out of the room, expecting his children to follow in his wake.

Zelos started to move when he pointed at the wood carving knife Irelia was holding. "Hey, does your knife want to have dinner with us too?"

Irelia visibly winced. She slowly put the knife down and shook her head, "No...Knives don't eat dinner..."

"I know that. Come on." Zelos laughed and motioned to her to follow him. "Let's go before dad actually gets upset."

Irelia looked at the knife, then at Zelos. He never thought about it before, but the smile she gave him back then seemed almost...forced? Nah, impossible. She knew it was not true, it was just a knife. An imaginary friend, he had one when he was around her age. At least it was not telling her to do something horrible, like kill people. Let her have it for a while.

Either way, it did not matter. After that day, she never brought such a notion up again. She must have gotten over it like any other kid.

* * *

_Six years later_

Zelos was outside, the birds were chirping, the smells of nature prevalent, and he was surrounded by eight Ionians dressed in training clothing. He held a wooden sword in one hand and scratched at his face with his other. He hummed and waited for them to attack him. By the time their hands moved, red marks appeared on their cheeks. They yelped and leaped away from him, rubbing their faces in pain.

"Heh!" Zelos admonished them with a waggle of his finger. "Your body language yelled your intentions! Gotta be careful with that or I'll sack you!"

The others laughed and shook their heads. They readied themselves once more. One of them called out to Zelos, "Oi, sarge! Let's make a deal!"

"A deal?" He motioned to them. "Go ahead, what's the deal?"

"If one of us touches ya, you buy drinks for us tonight!"

Zelos rolled his eyes and threw his bokken to the ground. He readied himself, grinning all the while. "Tell you what, whoever makes me bleed first, I'll buy em drinks for the rest of the year. I get you though? You owe _me_a drink."

The Ionians laughed and nodded, preparing themselves. Zelos' eyes flitted about, his hands poised and ready for any attack.

"Sarge!"

A man came running up the fields, red faced and out of breath. Zelos looked over and waved at him, "Hey Liang, what's up?"

"It's...It's..." The thin man tried to catch his breath. "It's your sister, sir!"

Zelos' eyes narrowed. He walked over and grabbed the man's shoulder, then started to drag him. "She's doing it again, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she is."

A little distance away, wood splintering could be heard.

"My arm!"

The twenty year old man, big in frame, clutched his arm in horrid amounts of pain. A big, black bruise could be seen, dribbles of blood seeping out of the tiny cuts that lacerated the area. Irelia held in one hand a broken wooden sword, and in her other hand she held her opponent's outstretched weapon hand. Around her neck, a little wooden talisman hung.

From the side, a young Akali and an older, still physically fit, woman watched. The woman leaned over and whispered aloud to the young ninja in training, "Not bad."

"No, mother. Not bad at all."

Irelia released her opponent's hand and bowed to him. "Are you alright?"

"Gah! How do you hit so hard?!"

Irelia looked at her broken training sword, analyzing it. She eventually shrugged in response. The man groaned and walked away, rubbing his arm profusely. "I think it's broken..." He made his way over to a bench where a whole gaggle of injured men sat. From boys and girls her age, to men older than Zelos, they rubbed at similar bruises.

Irelia looked around, staring at the other trainees her age and older. Even the Placidium guards looked uneasy from her gaze.

"Next?"

"Irie, what are you doing?"

Irelia turned to the source of the voice. She smiled and waved at the approaching Zelos. "Training."

Akali's mother spoke up, "She is doing fine. I'm watching her, nephew. Them being too fragile to be her sparring partners is the only problem I can see."

"That's not the problem, auntie dear." Zelos grinned at Irelia and crossed his arms, mock fury evident on his face. "I'm here because I'm told that she's just kicking everyone's butt left right and center. Can't let you get too big of a head, right?"

Irelia readied herself in a stance, her hands raised. She motioned to Zelos to make an attack, a gesture he laughed at. Shaking his bokken at her, he asked, "Do you want a weapon, or do you want to do this the good ol' fashioned way?"

"I want a weapon. I want to show you something."

"Oh?" Zelos threw the wooden sword at her. "Alright, show me."

By the time Irelia caught it, Zelos had disappeared from view. He reappeared behind Irelia, his hand slicing at the back of her neck. "And got...ya?"

Irelia ducked, rolled backwards in between his legs and vaulted herself to a standing position.

"Hah! Nice job Irie! Is that what you wanted to show me?"

"No." Irelia dashed forward. "This is."

Zelos barely reacted in time, the palm of his hand slapping the point of the wooden blade away from his chest. If he were any slower, that would have hurt his ego, and possibly break a rib. Irelia spun around from the force of his impact, landing squarely into his open arms. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug, rocking her back and forth playfully, "Nice one, Irie! I didn't get the hang of the Bladesurge technique till I was fifteen! Although..." He turned Irelia around to face him, then pushed her away. "Your footing was a bit off which slowed ya a lot. The point of the Bladesurge technique is to get from point A to point B as though there was no distance at all. And besides..."

Zelos reached over and bopped the top of Irelia's head. "Why were you aiming for my chest? You trying to kill me or something?" In front of the entire crowd, he messed her hair about. "That's just being sloppy, Irie!"

Irelia did not particularly enjoy the demeaning gestures or words in front of everyone, and she made sure she communicated this via the glare she shot Zelos. He laughed and grinned as he always did, "Oi oi oi, Irie, don't be mad. You're still young. Remember dad's golden rule?"

"Blood deserves punishment, for you have already lost the fight?"

"...Okay, second rule?"

"To kill is easy, but to incapacitate is a true test of a swordsman's skill?"

"Yup!"

Irelia grumbled to herself and nodded. Zelos laughed and started to walk away. She called out to him, "Zelos, your sword?"

"Eh? Ah! Nah, keep it!" He waved at his little sister, "Try not breaking that one though, alright? Keep your self control in check, and I expect to see that sword at dinner tonight!"

Zelos walked away, motioning to the others that had followed him to follow him once more. "Come on, back to training we go."

"Zelos?" A new, yet familiar voice spoke up.

He turned around and waved at the woman approaching. "Hey, Karma! What's up?"

"The Council wants to speak with you." Karma bowed to him. "I was asked to retrieve you."

Zelos sighed and rolled his eyes, "They're interrupting my training."

"It's urgent. It's about Noxus."

Zelos' eyes narrowed. He nodded and quietly made his way into the building of the Placidium. Irelia moved forward to follow them when a matron's voice said, "Irelia. You will now train with Akali."

"But Zel-"

The woman sliced the air with her hand, silencing Irelia. "He will be fine. You need to train more if you want to beat him, right? You want to make your father, and him, proud, yes?"

"...Yes."

"Then leave him alone, and train. Akali needs a warm up, and Soraka will be coming to take you for your studies in an hour. Do not procrastinate."

Akali stepped towards Irelia, unsheathing her kamas. "You know he is proud of you, yes?"

Irelia nodded and took a stance. She knew that, of course, but she wanted to hear him say the words. She wanted to hear him say that he is proud of her, that she deserves to be a successor to the Hiten art. Anything she could do, he always did better. Her dream was to run side by side with him. Not as Irie, not the delicate doll he made her out to be, but for him to respect her as his equal. She wanted to live up to their family name, and make Zelos proud to call her his sister rather than laugh and make a joke as he always did. He was warm, he was charismatic, he was swift, he was able to implant his personality into his technique. Everyone that met him seemed to like him almost instantly, while she? Almost everyone else was put off by her demeanor. she was just a bit serious, that was all, and in all honesty? A little shy. Irelia found it hard to interact with others she did not know, or grow up with in the Nightblade village. Irelia knew it would be foolish to try and overcome him, but she wanted to be his equal. Was that so wrong to dream?

Irelia's mind focused once more at the ninja before her, and she surged towards Akali. No fear, no hesitation, she would become better, and Zelos would have to acknowledge her skill some day. He would have to.

That evening, she found out that Zelos was chosen to sail to Demacia within the week. He had agreed.

Her stomach knotted. He was leaving her. Irelia could not hear Soraka's words or Zelos'. He was leaving her, like their father, he would not be here. War was looming, why would they send him away? She barely heard the explanation. She was numb.

Despite their reassurances, Irelia did not respond. She would stay at the Placidium until it was time for him to travel westward towards Karma's village, the nearest port. Irelia was allowed to accompany them. On their way there, ten or so miles away from the village while on the carriage, she saw something from the corner of her eye despite her bowed head. Deep within the forestry there, she saw the blossoms of a familiar flower waft in the wind. She would make one plea from him, but chances were that he was going to go anyways. Once he said something, he always, _always_, kept his promise. He was going to go, but Irelia would make sure that he remembered her.

The moment they reached the port town, Irelia ran towards the woods without a word to anyone. No one stopped her, knowing how angry she must be at the moment.

It took hours, but Irelia found the tree with her namesake's blossoms. He would return. She knew it. When he returned, she'd make sure that he would come home to a stronger Irelia, to a stronger sister. She would make him see that she can walk side by side with her big brother.

* * *

Author's Notes: Still updating! Caught up in multiple projects! Hoo boy, I have a long way to go, and then I have to do an overhaul edit of this story. Hope you're all enjoying it still, and I will be finishing this story! It will be a couple more chapters and then tadah! I have so much to catch up on! Hoo boy! Going to have to do Equinox next, people are going to kill me if I don't update that, and the next Riven story is incoming!


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

"...And it is because of these people, such as your sister, and even Riven, that I was so easily able to give my eyes up. For those who have sacrificed more than I have, for those who do what is needed, the loss of eyes is paltry."

Zelos whistled at the length of the story. It was almost as long as his own.

The two men were walking aimlessly about, only minutes away from the back gate of the Placidium. Lee Sin "looked" over at Zelos and asked him a simple question. "What is it that ails you?"

"Mm? I thought we went over this."

"Everyone dies, Zelos. It is inev-"

"And like I said before, if you finish that sentence..." Zelos growled. "As nice of a guy as you are, I will slap you. She will not die, not like that."

"It is not up to you. It never is."

"I know, but it's not fair, not for her..."

Lee Sin patted Zelos' shoulder gently. "How are you helping her now?"

"...I'm not sure. I feel useless. That's why I was going to go after Riven, talk to her, ask her why Irelia and her are friends." He quickly added with an accompanied shrug, "Then probably try and kill her when I remember that she butchered my village and my friends and neighbors."

Lee drummed his fingers on the man's shoulder. He seemingly ignored that comment for now. "Irelia may come back to the Placidium in the time you are amiss, and see that you are not there. How would that make her feel?"

"...She'd probably be angry with me," He laughed. "Like, seething mad."

"You think this, yet you are willing to continue with your actions."

Zelos' laughter did not die down. He pointed at Lee Sin, his voice still light despite what he said next. "You know, something that Udyr guy said to me really got me. I should have said no." His laughter became louder, teeming with emotion now. "I should have said no, I should have listened to my little sister, she's so much smarter than me. I should have stayed, instead of trying to act like the big man and big brother and I gotta live up to those expectations and responsibility crap. They may have chosen me, but I said yes. I could have said no, stayed with her, maybe sully our family name, but she wouldn't look at me like that. Because I left, Irelia is...She's sick. She's dying. I just, I just wish there was an easy solution for once. She deserves it, she really deserves it."

"People rarely get what they deserve, Zelos, without working for it." Lee Sin gently pulled Zelos' shoulder, taking him to a nearby rock that not even the brooding man saw. "Have you considered that this is, perhaps, what Irelia thinks she deserves?"

"...What?"

"Is Irelia happy?"

Lee sat atop the rock. Its top was smooth and was large enough to easily seat three or four people. He waited for Zelos to follow suit who made his way over and sat down on top of the rock next to the monk.

Lee asked again, "Is Irelia happy with her life?"

"...I don't know. I don't care."

"Hm?"

Zelos laughed once more and shook his head. "So what if these are her choices, Lee? So what if her choice is to die? So what if she's 'content'?" He pointed at the monk, his voice growing in volume. "You weren't there when that whacko woman attacked the Placidium."

"Technically, I was. I was with U-"

"Not what I meant," Zelos interrupted. "You didn't see her eyes. You didn't see them, you didn't hear her tone when she was fighting that Syndra chick." His hands balled up into fists. "I saw anger. I saw hatred."

Lee did not say anything. Instead he let Zelos continue.

A hiccup left Zelos' lips as tears started to stream from his eyes. "They weren't at the woman though. She was angry, sure, but she didn't hate the woman. Maybe she did, but not nearly as much as she hated herself. She looked empty. Irelia's anger was not only focused on her. She was angry, and hateful of herself. Her...her soul was crying." He wiped away the moisture from his eyes, stemming it successfully. "Irelia shouldn't cry. She shouldn't hate herself or be angry at herself ever. Irelia is stronger than that. She's smarter than me, she's a kinder, gentler person than me. She's everything I should be, but can never be. She deserves so much more." Zelos slammed his fists onto his knees. "So much more."

Lee nodded his head, "looked" forward and rested his chin on his palm. "So you can see why Irelia is able to call Riven 'friend'."

"...I suppose, yeah," he morosely chuckled. "I just...I can't understand how she's able to do that. And the stories I heard, of Irelia's exploits. Jarvan told me about them. Thousands of people, Lee. She literally slaughtered thousands of Noxians and Zaunites, when she was just _fourteen_ fucking years old. How? How is someone so strong, so willing to fight, to die for their country, for what they care about, and their reward for doing such feats is...this?"

Zelos's shoulders quaked, blood dripped from his fingernails cutting into his palms. "It will not be a sword, not her better, not age that bests her, but this sickness. That is her reward for Irelia being Irelia? That is what my little sister thinks she deserves, to have her life cut short?" His tone hardened, it sounded almost frightening. Lee could notice the shift in Zelos' aura as his eyes started to lose their life, and gained a hint of familial hollowness. "I refuse to believe that. I refuse to think such a fate is hers. If she truly gave up on life, then she would not have any friends, she would not have anything left except her blade. Then when I first met her, when I couldn't recognize her, that would be her constant state. I see Irelia. I see her."

Lee Sin let Zelos talk, sitting there and listening in silence. The monk eventually spoke once the man had finished his spiel. "You think it unfair?"

"Yes."

"What then will you do?" Lee "stared" out in front of him. "Killing doesn't seem to be the solution here."

"...Why are you a part of the League, Lee?"

The monk "looked" over at Zelos. If the bandage did not cover the majority of his face, one would see his raised eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Why are you, of all people, a part of the League, Lee? Why are you? Why is Soraka?"

The monk shrugged his shoulders, and replied in a casual tone, "As I said in my tale, it is because I was needed. As peaceful, as nonviolent as I am, as loving as Soraka is, we know that there is a time for talk, and a time to fight. It is not what we necessarily want to do, but we will do what is needed. I will not let injustice slide."

"At any cost?"

"At any cost," Lee confirmed.

Zelos stood up and started marching back to the Placidium. "Then you know _exactly_ how I feel. At _any_ cost."

The blind monk watched Zelos march back towards the Placidium. He chuckled and continued to sit on his rock, as though he were waiting for someone

* * *

Zelos walked through the Placidium's courtyard on a predetermined course. He barely heard the soft, familiar voice call out to him. It took the owner of the voice's hand gently grabbing him to snap him back to reality instead of what thoughts mulled in his head.

"Zelos?"

It was Soraka. What was she doing here? Wait, did that mean what he thought it meant?

"Soraka? Does this mean that Irelia is-?"

"Not yet," she clarified. The Starchild smoothed her hair back, her eyes not quite meeting his. "Irelia regained consciousness a short while ago. She refused to relax until Karma or I spoke with you, to reassure her health."

"Alright then..." Zelos crossed his arms, staring at the motherly woman. "Reassure me."

"...She's..." Soraka winced. "Recovering."

"Mhm. And?"

"She may be able to walk within the week."

"I see. Excellent," the sarcasm was not lost in his voice. "May I ask you something?"

Soraka nodded.

"How did she contract dad's illness?"

Soraka closed her eyes. She reached over and took Zelos' hand into her own as she softly gripped it. She was trying to calm him before speaking the truth. "It's not an illness."

"...What?"

"It's not an illness. It's not an affliction. It's not a disease." Soraka's eyes opened slowly, her entire demeanor saddened by what she was about to say. "It's natural."

Zelos became as pale as death. "Wh...what?"

"Your father's 'illness', the reason why it was incurable, is because it is natural," Soraka reaffirmed. "It is because he was a Hiten user."

This did not help calm Zelos as he tried pulling away from the Starchild. This failed as his knees buckled and he sank to the ground.

"Until your father came around, I have heard the sporadic story of the Hiten users. Your grandfather was an...unhappy man, one whom Xiang truly hated."

"Dad hated no one-"

"Except your grandfather," Soraka confirmed. "Your father broke tradition, Zelos. Not only did he marry a woman not of an affiliated village with yours, but he had two children, not one. The lineage of the Hiten users only has a single child, and since you were the elder one, Irelia was to be killed for your father's transgression. When your grandfather came to visit you that day, he had brought with him a few of the last Nightblades loyal to him. He also brought with him..." The Starchild started to shake, the words barely leaving her lips. "The Muramana, renamed by its future wielders into _Akuma no Kiga_. I felt its presence _once_. Never again."

The Muramana. Akuma no Kiga, the Hunger of the Demon. Zelos had heard stories of this blade, by his own father. Its predecessor, the Manamune, was said to transform into a horrific blade once it was satiated with enough mana drained from its user and if it tasted enough blood. The Muramana was the blade that belonged to the line of the Sovereigns, and was sealed and hidden away once the last Sovereign was slain. That was just legend though, any elite guard in the Placidium carried a Manamune on their person. Zelos was reassured it was just a myth, a legend, that it no longer existed.

"That's...impossible. How?"

Soraka's tone did not falter. "Your family line had two blades, not one, that followed its lineage. Your ancestor, the very first successor, was named Mune. His name was lost through the annals of history, he was from a time from before even me."

The Starchild took a breath before continuing her explanation, "Mune was a master swordsmith, and he created his masterpiece in order to suit the Hiten style. The ascension of his sword was seen in him defeating the Sovereign. A little known fact is after defeating the First Sovereign, the Sovereign requested two things of Mune: First, trademark blades to be created for his elite guard, named after the smith. Second, a blade to be made for himself and named after him: Mura. The Muramana was then created. It was a masterpiece meant to show the Sovereign's soul to all that saw him, and its actual metal was able to shape itself to the will of the owner. Unfortunately, because of what the Sovereigns descended into, it became a cursed blade, focused on the material hunger of its wielders. The two blades were then passed down from one successor to the next, since they opposing sides of the same coin."

Zelos was not quite sure where this conversation was going. He dumbly nodded and let her speak more.

"When your father and I first met, he brought with him _Odayakana Chō_: A suitable sword for such a father asked me to help unlock the secret of his sword. He did not want to inherit his father's blade, the Muramana, and wished to discover why this impractical sword was made. No one since the fall of the Sovereigns had been able to decipher its usage. You remember his stories, Xiang never killed a single person in all of his travels. He would fight, he would wound, but he would never kill, that was who he was. He found me in my own travels and asked how to unlock his sword to protect others, to defend the weak. Who would know better than the Starchild, the one who has lived for so long? His soul shined brighter than almost anyone I have ever met, and he was a good man. I could not help him, but say what I was taught: 'A weapon should be an extension of one's soul, nothing more, nothing less'. I saw when he put his mind to something, it reacted favorably to him, and I told him as much. When he defended Momiji and her village, it sprung to life. I was there, I witnessed that sight. When Irelia put the people over herself, when she was able to hear my plea and came back to us, the sword came to life. That is the extent of my knowledge of _Odayakana Chō_. The Muramana met its fate at your father's hands: Your father broke the Muramana in a single stroke, and shattered your grandfather's will on that day. He took the two halves of the broken blade and brought it to me to exorcise it. Your grandfather left the village and died in the mountains alone, a hermit, because he could not face the fact that he was defeated by his, 'weakling' son."

Soraka pressed her hand against Zelos' chest, her voice nearly weeping. "How can you destroy a sword that was as strong as the will of its owner? It takes a toll. Your father died when he was in his forties because of this, not of sickness. You and Irelia have the same soul as your father, except they are brighter. Both blades, forged by the same man, rely on the same source: Your soul. Your will. For the Hiten style, in order to touch a god, one must transcend their flesh for flesh is weak. To transcend flesh, one must have the willpower and belief to do so. When one has done that, one can fly. When one flies, they can touch the heavens themselves. This is the Flying Heaven art, or Hiten style. The price for transcending flesh is the abandonment of it, and for the soul itself to take the brunt of the injuries that would kill a normal person. The willpower of one far surpasses the weakness that is flesh. What should kill you does not, but it must take its toll one way or another."

"Wh...nuh..." Zelos could not formulate the words. His mind was racing This...he did not expect this. This was the last thing he had expected. How...did she know all of this? Not even he knew most of what Soraka was saying. How is this possible?

"The more she uses the Hiten style," Soraka continued. "The shorter her life becomes. That is your fate, as well, Zelos. Your soul bears the same cracks. If it were not for me at that battle, if it were not my pleas that went up to her, if I had not seen her soul, then I would continue diagnosing her condition as an illness and she would have died years ago. A sickness is something that can be cured more often than not. Your father's soul was shattered by his years of fighting, by his travels, by the loss of your mother, by breaking his own father and by training _two_ successors. That is why there is only one. To train one cuts the lifespan of a master exponentially, imagine what training two would do? How much more effort, how much more strain it puts on one's body?"

'_Yet there were several successors who lived to be seventy...there's a chance._'

"That means Irelia should have a child sooner," Zelos replied. "That means she needs to have a family. Then she can settle and I can train her child to-"

"She won't be able to bear children."

Numb. His body, he barely felt pain, barely felt cold, heat, touch in general, but he could still tell that he was now feeling numb. He looked at Soraka, his eyes pleading for an explanation.

"She...Ever since the battle of the Placidium, she has rarely had her monthly cycle."

"R...r-rarely?"

Soraka nodded. Tears streamed down her face. "In the last few months, she was showing signs of recovery. It took nearly a decade for her, from a healthy body to her ravaged one, in order to recover. From the Syndra fight, I think she will be made barren. Even then, I am not sure how long she has to live. She may die within the year from this much damage, this much strain."

'_Oh Gods...She knew this. That's why she she said...Oh Gods no..._'

"Anything and everything that affects the soul, affects her lifespan," Soraka confirmed. "Her anger, her...her rage, the strain on her body, the injuries, everything afflicts her soul. The only way she could possibly live longer is if she never fought again. Her happiness, her wanting to live, these are the only frail strings holding her soul in place. If she had stopped fighting long ago, she would have had a chance to live to old age, but-"

"No."

Zelos got up from the ground. He shook his head, "No...That's not it..." He giggled, his eyes showing a strange, almost crazy glint in them. "No no no, that's not it at all. Don't you see, Soraka? Hee hee, she has to keep on fighting!"

He reached over and grabbed the Starchild's shoulders, his grin widening. "Tell me one thing, Soraka, one more thing. How do you know all of this history?" His eyes burned at her. "Have you been hiding this from Irelia and me the entire time? Hm?"

"I didn't know, Zelos, I'm sorry. I didn't know. I wouldn't have known if it were not for Irelia," Soraka replied, somewhat fearful of the man she considered a son. "In terms of her condition, I was going to tell you, but w-"

"And how, pray tell, did Irelia know? Hm? _I_ didn't know, and I've been alive longer than she has been."

The Starchild looked around, then whispered to Zelos, just barely audible for him to hear: "_Odayakana Chō_ _told her._"

His face dropped. He released Soraka, turned around and started to pace.

"Zelos...I'm sorry, I wish that Syndra had never-"

"Sh," he interrupted with a harsh sounding hiss. "I'm thinking."

"Zelos, don't do anything foolish. Irelia wants you to be happy. That is her wish, she told me as much."

The man looked over at Soraka, brightened up and grinned at her. "Happy? Me? Soraka, please, believe me. I will be happy." He leaned over and kissed her forehead, not caring for the horn that prodded his nose. "I promise you, I will make things right. I'm just a little angry at the moment. The candle that burns twice as bright burns twice as quick, right?"

Soraka gave him a suspicious stare, seeing the subtle changes in his aura. He was planning something. "...Yes. It does."

"That's fine. I accept that."

"Zelos, I-"

"Where's Yi?" He looked around. "I need to talk to him, need to calm myself. I'm sorry, Soraka, but I'm...a little emotional at the moment."

"I understand, Zelos. Yi is at the Institute for now. Let me accompany you, and let us get some t-"

"Oh no you don't," he laughed. Zelos leaned over and hugged Soraka, "You need to go back and look after Irelia. I want you to try your best in helping her recover. Spend every moment with her."

"...You're being suspicious, Zelos."

"Soraka, please, when have I ever broken my word?" He patted her arms reassuringly. "Trust me, I won't do anything foolish. Besides, I can see the Kinkou agents behind you in the rafters watching me just incase."

The Starchild and her surrogate son stared at one another. She eventually relented. "Alright. I trust you."

A few minutes later, Zelos burst into Irelia's room, stormed over to the sword and slammed his hand against the ruby center. It exploded with ki energy, a bright orange, as he spoke to it. "You understand me. I am one half of the successorship, the sheath. You will relate this to her: I will see her at home."

* * *

Lee Sin sat on the rock for more than an hour. Truth be told, he was half asleep when he heard the wind whistling. Zelos stopped in front of him, wearing soaking wet clothing. In one hand he held a Manamune, one of the many ancient blades that only the elite guards of the Placidium were allowed to carry. In the other he held a dagger. The surface on the metal seemed to depict the waves of an ocean as whatever process made it seem to ripple with life.

"Hey...Lee..." He sucked in a breath of air. "Where Riven's village?"

"Hm? Why?"

"I need to speak with her."

"Are you in a rush?"

Zelos winced and shrugged. "...I may have...uh...knocked a guard out."

"Mhm."

"Maybe several."

"I see."

"And one Kinkou member. In my defense, he was an accident, I jumped out the window, we crashed in mid air and we hit the fountain."

"Ah," the monk nodded. He pointed at Zelos while asking, "So...why should I tell you, if this is your standard reaction?"

"Because," Zelos grunted. "The candle that burns twice as fast burns twice as quick. I'm going to cut the base off of one candle, get another candle, tie the wicks together and extend its life."

Lee Sin chuckled at the metaphor. He smiled at Zelos and replied, "An adequate answer. I shall tell you."

* * *

Author's Notes: Gaaah I have so much to catch up on, sorry! I need to reply to reviews, finish up the rest of the stories and get my butt into gear! Sorry!


	21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

The last thing she remembered, when she was conscious, was that she collapsed after promising Zelos that she would see him again in this life.

From that point on, she felt like she was swimming. It was a familiar sensation, though it was incomparable to what she had felt many times on the Fields of Justice. Whenever she died on the Fields, it felt unnatural. It was as though she were attempting to swim through a swamp, or a marshland, rather than the expanse of an ocean.

Muddled words would drift to her ears every now and then. She barely recognized them as words, just sounds. Unlike the last time she was in such a state, she could feel a warmth. She had made a promise, to someone, right? Did it matter?

Stand up.

Was she at peace now? Yes...she was. She was strangely happy. That was the best way she could put it, she was calm, serene, happy. No more responsibilities. No more pain. No more anything. True tranquility at last.

Stand up.

But she made a promise, right? Would she really be faulted for breaking it? No, wait...she made two promises. Three. Wait...how many promises did she make? Did she forget? Were the memories slipping away? She could not leave them like this now, could she?

Stand up.

Despite the peace, the tranquility, she still had responsibilities. Fight for a bit longer, just a bit more, and then she could return here.

Stand. Up.

Irelia's eyes fluttered open, her breathing shallow. It was not a white room this time, she was sure of that, but she stared up at an occluding whiteness. How odd. Irelia was not wrapped in bandages; whatever was covering her was the only thing covering her modesty. What was it that was covering her? She could barely feel the fabric. Was it a fabric? Should she not check? She squinted her eyes, she was still staring at the apparent ceiling. By squinting, Irelia could see dark shapes start to take form. It was then that she realized her vision was impaired.

Irelia raised herself up, she felt tired beyond reason. A cloth started to slip away, but pressed hands over her chest kept it from falling any further. Irelia assumed the cloth was placed there to help protect her modesty. She winced in pain, and used her elbows to try and rest while sitting up. Her vision was still fuzzy, unable to focus properly. Irelia could make out basic shapes, and hear the distant buzz of people's tones.

One sounded like Karma who was lost in some sort of trance. Irelia could feel the pulsation of a familiar ki being emitted from what she assumed were Karma's hands. Many Ionians utilized ki in their art, since it was the most natural form of 'magic' to them. However, there were few adept in the manipulation of the actual fabric of the lifeforce from which all Ionian martial arts, all Ionian magic, all Ionian culture rested upon.

Luckily for Irelia, two of the most adept practitioners of this specific art were none other than Soraka and Karma.

Soraka, or who Irelia presumed to be her, was on her opposite side, across from Karma. The Starchild's hands weaved the air, vermillion strands being plucked, mended, pulled. Irelia tried to speak, but only a whisper of pain escaped her lips.

Karma and Soraka's eyes snapped open, they stared at Irelia, surprised. The Starchild stuttered, "I-Irelia? You're awake?"

She nodded, and attempted to push herself upwards, her vision still muddled. She could see some brown shapes, light shining in, but could not really put her finger as to where she was precisely. She assumed it was Soraka's grove.

Karma's hands kept her from rising any further, the magic dissipating due to their concentration being interrupted. Karma attempted to soothe the wounded woman, "Irelia, you need to rest more. Do not push y-"

"Where is Zelos?" Irelia feebly struggled against Karma's hands, only to fall backwards. It was a rare sight, to see her this weak, this _broken_. "What happened at the dinner? Did I ruin-"

"Irelia, sh sh sh, calm yourself," Soraka murmured. "You were hovering between life and death for a while."

"A while?" Irelia shut her eyes tightly, wincing, trying to remember. "How...many days, has it been?"

"Nine days now. You have not moved s-"

"I have duties to attend to," Irelia interrupted the Starchild. She struggled to get up yet again. "Where is my sword? I need t-"

"No," Soraka firmly stated. She pressed her finger against Irelia's nose and pushed it lightly. The young Ionian woman could barely feel her friend's touch."You are not going anywhere. The treatment is not yet completed, and even after it is done, we will have to help repair your atrophied muscles. You will let us finish your treatment, and then you will be allowed to move."

Irelia was surprised by the sternness Soraka was showing. That really only meant one thing. "How long do I have?"

Neither of them answered. Karma bowed her head, and rested it against Irelia's shoulder. The Duchess of Ionia, reached over and gripped her friend's hand, squeezing it lightly, to assure Irelia that she was there for her.

Irelia could barely feel the fingers, the sensation of touch. She felt numb, not out of shock or anything. It was an odd sensation, to not be able to feel something so basic as touch. What was the full extent of the damage she had undertaken? Irelia's other hand slowly shifted over and rested itself on her abdomen. She could easily guess what it meant.

"...I cannot say for sure. Maybe a year, at most," Soraka answered. "Maybe a bit more, maybe a bit less. The damage is too great, your soul is barely holding itself together. The seams are weakening."

Irelia heard her words, the taste in her mouth metallic. She knew that Soraka was telling the truth. "...How long has it been since one of you spoke to Zelos?"

"Neither of us have seen him since the dinner," Karma replied.

"I want someone to tell him I'm alive."

"Just rest and relax, and you will be able to tell him in per-"

"I want someone, to tell him, I'm alive," Irelia snapped. Her grip around Karma's hand tightened. If she were at her full strength, it would have easily crushed bone, but all the Duchess felt was a pathetic squeeze.

Soraka nodded and softly replied, "I will tell him. Karma will stay here at your side."

Irelia watched the Starchild stand up, lean over and kiss her forehead. Her version was starting to clear, she could see Soraka drawing back from her, smiling at the resting woman. "You feel warmer to the touch. I think you will be able to walk once more within the week."

Irelia did not reply to this, and remained on her back.

"Is there anything else you would like to tell him?"

She contemplated this request. Truthfully, she was not sure if Soraka should say anything, since there was so much to tell him. So much to talk about. Where would Soraka start? Where would she, Irelia, start? Would she start at the beginning? Would she start with her plans for successorship? Would she tell him why she has father's condition? How could she tell him without breaking down? Without looking weak?

Irelia had a chance before, she could have told him then and there, but she did not. Irelia did not want to sadden him, her always smiling brother. Her thoughts continued to race, her body growing more and more tense, her muscles tightening.

The gentle voice of Soraka rang out as she started to hum an old, Ionian lullaby. "{Sleep well, oh child. So mother can go to the market to buy an earthen saucepan. If she goes to the southern market, she will buy you a long and bent sugar cane, or if she goes to the northern market, she will buy you a bent and long sugar cane.}"

Irelia's body visibly relaxed, but her displeased facial expression masked any physical relief she experienced. Her aura, however, to Soraka and Karma, became noticeably more mellow, less intense in its vibrant, vermillion color. "I'm not a child, Soraka."

"But you're stressing, dear." The Starchild cupped Irelia's face and bowed her head, forcing a smile. "You should not push yourself so hard, not now. You need to relax. I will let him know how you are doing, and I will answer any questions he may have. Will that help?"

Irelia had to tell him herself. She owed that to her brother, she should be telling him what is wrong, she should be telling him what happened. Irelia's hand shook. An alien feeling was overcoming her. Irelia nodded her head in response to the Starchild's question.

Soraka rose up from her side, her tone denoting her concern. "Karma, if anything is amiss..."

"I will send out the signal for the Kinkou."

Soraka smiled at Irelia once more, and started to walk away. Irelia's head rolled over, staring at the fleeting image of the Starchild. Her vision had mostly cleared up now, and she could recognize that she was in Soraka's Grove. Her grove had a cavelike structure embedded into a hillside, where the Starchild made her home. Tree roots hung down from the high ceiling resembling organic stalactites, the earthen walls were carved out by the elemental forces of nature over the course of centuries. Soraka had a few pieces of wooden furniture, ranging from tables to cots stuffed with moss and leaves, expressly for the convenience of visitors. She could only stare at Soraka for a few scant moments, the sunlight forcing her to avert her eyes.

Once Soraka was gone, Irelia's body started to shake. Her grip on Karma's hand tightened. The Duchess grew visibly worried, and stood up, healing ki flowing from her hands.

"K-Karma?" Irelia stuttered.

Karma's face became a ghostly white. She had never heard Irelia nervous in her entire life. Not when they were young, not during the war, not during the worst throes of her condition, not ever. "Yes, Irelia?"

"I..." Irelia took a harsh swallow of air, reining herself in before speaking. She needed to retain her dignity, for her own sake. "I...I don't want to say it outloud..."

Karma let out a breath of relief, shuffled over closer to Irelia and pressed her friend's hand against her chest. "You don't have to. I know."

Irelia nodded, and closed her eyes. Her breathing was shallow, the metal taste in her mouth still prevalent. If it were not for Karma and Soraka's magic, she would have been dead by now. No water, no food in all this time, she was in a delicate state.

"Should I recite some poetry until Soraka returns?" Karma asked in anxious tone.

Irelia gave no response. The Duchess decided to do so anyways, softly chanting old poems.

Roughly two hours later, Irelia felt a strange pang in her chest. It was not one of pain, but one of...calmness. Reassurance? That was the best way to put it. She could almost hear someone say, "_I will see her at home._"

It was not Karma, who was still reciting whatever prose came to her mind, but it was familiar all the same. Whatever it was, it brought a smile to Irelia's lips.

It felt she waited for an eternity. when Soraka finally returned. The Starchild sat down next to Irelia, using her knees as support, and rose her hands over the Ionian woman once more, channeling her magic.

"How is Zelos?"

"He is well."

"Did he ask?"

"He did."

"How..." Irelia stopped in mid sentence to take a strange, nervous swallow. "How did he react?"

Soraka closed her eyes, breathing slowly but evenly. She gave herself a few moments to recollect herself before replying. "He...took it better than expected, to say the least."

"Oh." That was all Irelia had to say about the matter. She would ask Soraka about the details when she was able to stand again. Irelia turned her head upwards, fatigue already overcoming her. "Will I see him when I go back?"

"I believe you will, yes."

Irelia nodded, her eyes fluttering close. She had stayed awake too long, she had overexerted herself. She mumbled out, "M'gud...I'll shee...home..."

The Duchess released Irelia's hand and stepped out of Irelia's view. She could hear her friend's footseps, but she was already dozing off. Karma soon returned, and Irelia felt something be pressed into her hand. Her fingers rubbed the object, instantly realizing it was her wooden talisman.

Irelia's hand tightened around it. Although she quickly succumbed to sleep, she remembered that she had to get up again. She had one of many promises to keep.

* * *

"{Look Riven! Look!}"

A group of children had surrounded a table, where a young girl excitedly held out a block of wood, messily carved to resemble a person. White fur was messily glued via pine resin atop the figure. The Exile was sitting at a table, eating her modest lunch of rice and vegetables. She looked over, her serious demeanor breaking into a smile when she saw the doll.

"{And who is this supposed to be?}" Riven asked. "{Can it perhaps be...your brother?}"

The girl shook her head, her friends giggling and laughing at her. A puzzled expression came across Riven's face, as she tried again. "{Hm...perhaps it is...The Thunder's Roar, Volibear?}"

The girl's face dropped, she seemed almost crushed.

Riven reached over and gently brushed her hair, softly laughing. "{It is wonderful, Hikari. It looks just like me...except for one thing.}" The Exile reached over and pointed at the messily painted on smile. "{Should I not be frowning? I think Ichigo has called me, 'Miss Grumpy-Pants', no?}"

The boy, the one she singled out, blushed profusely and looked away, whistling his innocence. Hikari held the doll out to Riven once more, "{It's a gift!}"

Riven took the doll and placed it next to her bowl. She nodded and softly replied, "{Thank you, Hikari.}"

She laughed and one of the other children chimed up. "{Are you going to be on break much longer, Riven?}"

Riven tilted her head, not sure why such a thing would be important. "{For a few more minutes, yes. Why?}"

The children looked at one another, excitedly whispering some sort of genius plan they had, and were about to say something when Riven stood up.

"You."

The children turned around, looking at the source of the voice. Zelos was standing scant feet away from them. He was dressed in flowing robes that encompassed his body in emerald, turquoise and sapphire colors. His long black hair was tied back into a ponytail, his expression on his face alarming to others. On one shoulder, he rested a straight edged blade. The diamond shaped base of the thin blade, the lack of a large hilt guard, it resembled a standard Manamune given to the Placidium's elite guards and members. On his belt, a dagger in its sheath hung. Zelos pointed at her with his chin, his voice lacking any sign of his usual cheer. "We need to talk."

Riven nodded and got up from her seat, leaving her half-eaten meal behind. She made sure to grab the doll and quickly placed it into a satchel she had hanging off her belt. The Exile pointed at a homestead, "We can talk there. Naa-nii is tending to her fields, and everyone else is working. I took my break late."

"{Riven...}" Hikari was worried. The last time someone wanted to talk to her, the Exile and many of the townspeople were nearly killed. The Ionian archer, Varus, had set the village back on its repairs a lot. The arrival of Udyr on the scene did not help in this regard when he clashed with the archer.

A firm pat on her head silenced the girl, and Riven walked towards the home. Zelos followed behind her, keeping at a proximity too close for comfort.

Once inside, his voice was no louder than a whisper. "You destroyed my home."

"Yes," she admitted in a pensive tone. Riven turned around, folded her hands on top of one another, rested them in front of her, then looked him in the eye. If she had a weapon on her, it was nowhere to be seen. She was unarmed.

"You hurt Irelia."

"I did, far worse than anyone ever could."

"You killed my people, slaughtered my friends, annihilated my village, and left nothing behind."

Riven nodded once more, her tone not wavering. "I did."

"Why should I not kill you, for all that you did?" Zelos pointed the Manamune at her. With his speed, he assumed he would be able to close the gap and easily inflict a wound, if not kill her on the spot. Despite this fact, he could see in her eyes that she remained calm.

"I will not convince you not to kill me, because I deserve death," Riven replied. "I will not argue that. I am here to try and make whatever amends I can. I want to help build, not destroy. I want to create, not kill. I know what I have done, those sins will never leave me. I am the person who inflicted all of those horrors. I am Riven the Butcher, I am Riven the Exile, I may even be called Nevir at times, but the truth of the matter? I am still her. I am still Riven."

She lowered her arms, and stared at Zelos. "I have not wronged anyone worse than I have wronged Irelia. You are her brother. If you think this will aid her, if you think this will aid you, if

this will right all the wrongs I have done, then kill me. Do not involve anyone else, strike me down, here and now."

Zelos' grip tightened around the blade. He whipped it forward with a broad swing.

The soft slurp of metal parting flesh could barely be heard.

* * *

"What do you mean he's _not _in the Placidium?" Irelia glared at the guard who told her the news. "What you mean he has _not _been _seen _in nearly _two weeks_?"

Private Kenji was the unfortunate soul who was chosen to speak with their captain. He and all the other guards were standing before her within their barracks. All of his friends, comrades, were watching him like a hawk as he stood in front of Irelia. They even drew straws to choose who would talk to her, with the one who drew the shortest being granted that honor. And as usual, he drew the shortest one. In fact, now that he thought about it, he always drew the shortest straw. Every single time. Like it was rigged, but how? They would let him pick first, and he always went for the one that stuck out...the...most...Oh those cheating-

"Private Kenji!" Irelia barked. "Explain!"

He looked at her and snapped to attention. His bow was jerky, nervous, almost like a doll being forced to do so in his place. "He disappeared shortly after he attacked Private Himura, ma'am!"

"Himura?" Irelia's eyes actually softened with concern, for a split moment. Her voice quickly returned to its usual firmness as she bombarded the guard with questions. "Why did he attack Himura? Where is he? Is he alright? Was there any sign of provocation?"

Kenji knew how much their captain cared for her guards, and it pained him to tell her that one was harmed. "Himura is recovering in the medical wing from a minor concussion. He was struck behind the head, and we found a note pinned to his armor written that had an apology, with Sergeant Lito's signature. It also said that he apparently owes Himura a night of drinks, something on those lines...?"

"And the why?"

"Well, apparently, he wanted a Manamune."

Silence fell upon them. Irelia broke the stillness quickly enough. "What?"

"He stole Private Himura's Manamune, ma'am."

"That is a ridiculous reason. Why would he do that? He would have been granted his own in a month, once he was fully reinstated as a sergeant."

"We don't know, ma'am."

Irelia knuckled her forehead and let out an exasperated breath. "Was anyone else harmed?"

"A Kinkou ninja, when the two collided midair."

"Is he alright?"

"Yes ma'am. He only suffered a sprained ankle and will make a swift recovery."

She nodded and fired a salute to them, "Thank you for telling me. Continue with your morning training routine, all of you."

Irelia turned around and left the room, her trademark sword not at her side for once. It was odd, seeing their captain like that. Sure she wore her ceremonial armor, but she seemed almost naked without her weapon.

Kenji whistled, relieved, "Well, that didn't go nearly as bad as we thought it would."

The others murmured in agreement. Kenji spun around and glared at his fellow guard, growling, "So who wants to tell me why they've been cheating me every single time we draw straws?!"

* * *

Irelia walked with a heavy step in deep thought. Where had he gone? Where could he have possibly gone? Soraka did not know, none of the guards seemed to know, and the Kinkou were not here. Where were they? She let out another sigh, walking down the hallways. Irelia wobbled slightly and braced herself against the wall.

Both Soraka and Karma suggested that Irelia should spend more time recovering. She had managed to start walking a bit before the Starchild's suggested day, but that was a feat in of itself. Every step made her feel physically drained.

Irelia could not let it hold her back, she had duties to attend to. She would try taking matters a little easier, after she did two things: First was to find Zelos and ask to have dinner with him, so they could talk. This ultimately failed, since he was not here at the Placidium. Fear and worry started to grip her heart, so she decided to complete her second task.

The door to her room swung open. Like a patient dog waiting for its beloved master, her sword surged to life. Vermillion energy crackled as it soared over to her side, bouncing excitedly. Irelia smirked at the sight, and gently brushed the blade's surface. "Hello, _Chō_."

Upon touching her blade, her fingers twitched. Something filled her mind. The same voice, the same message as before, '_I will see her at home._' Irelia drew back, somewhat surprised. She pressed her hand against her sword again. Perhaps there was more to this message? '_You understand me. I am one half of the successorship, the sheath. You will relate this to her: I will see her at home._'

"...Zelos?" It sounded alot like him, but there was a key difference: He sounded serious. Overly serious, it could not have been him, could it? Yet, this was her only clue to his current location. Home? He was not here at the Placidium, so what could he mean by...home...

Home.

Irelia sprinted out of her room, her sword trailing quickly behind her. She screeched to a halt when she turned a corner and nearly bodychecked Jarvan.

"Lady Lito, you've returned," he calmly replied, his arms outstretched and readied to catch her if need be.

Irelia stopped in time and quickly composed herself. She gave the prince a quick formal bow. "It is nice to see you, Prince Lightshield, but I am needed elsewhere. Do forg-"

"Does it require your immediate attention? I have been concerned, and-"

Jarvan was quickly silenced by a quick, informal hug from Irelia, who then drew back and bowed once more to the prince. "Jarvan, I am sorry for my rudeness and thank you for your concern. I am fine, but this business must be attended to as soon as possible. I will return within the week, before you depart for Demacia. I promise."

Jarvan's lips broke into a small grin, and he gave her a small nod of his head. "I understand, Irelia."

Irelia took off running once more. Despite the distance of nearly eighty kilometers, she needed to go somewhere where she had not been in over a decade: Home.

* * *

Nearly ten hours later, from arriving at the Placidium just shortly after the crack of dawn, to roughly four in the afternoon, Irelia slowed her pace to a walk. She had taken a sporadic break, knowing that if Soraka and Karma were here, she would have had her ear talked off about having to be careful and look after herself. And of course, they were right. Irelia knew they were right, but now was not the time for rest. Still, she did try pacing herself, just so she could say that she did.

Her boot crunched onto charred ash. Despite all these years, the grass still had not grown back, not on this field. Irelia looked around at the destroyed village. Skeletons of houses, blackened, charred, barely stood in place. Another step and the sharp sound of bone cracking under her boot echoed throughout the dead landscape.

This was the result of war. Nothing living remained. At least, nothing living should have remained. Burnt to the very bedrock, it was a scar upon the land.

Yet her senses told her that someone, some_thing_, was here. She stepped through the eerily quiet village. No birds chirped. No insects buzzed. It was only the sound of her boots, softly crunching on the broken stones, bones, and weaponry of a once thriving village.

Everywhere she looked, the memories raced. Irelia stopped at one building, most of its structure collapsed. This was where they used to buy their bread. The old woman used to smile at her. She had taught Irelia how to bake her family's secret red bean bun recipe.

Irelia remembered her entrails raining down on her.

A voice sounded like the whistle of wind hissed in her mind.

'_What is this? Is there anything left?_'

More quiet steps, more memories flooded her senses. This house had a family, the boy had a crush on her. She had one on him too, she never admitted to it, and really, it was too late to do so. She knelt down in front of the door that was ajar. Irelia saw at its base scratches, as though fingernails had maniacally tore at the wood. With a quick brush of her hand, she found the remnants of fingernails embedded in the dirt.

'_Why do I feel broken?'_

She stood up after a few moments of silence and continued to walk about the village. This street was for the vendors. Once spices, cooked meats filled the air, handcrafted pottery were strewn stall upon stall each with their own unique creative style. Now nothing but old decay could be smelled, burn marks where the stalls once were.

Irelia stopped at one spot, staring at the dirt. She reached up and touched her baos that were clipped in her hair. They were expensive, even back then. Irelia wanted them, but she wanted to buy them herself. She had done extra training, more chores, even asked for some odd jobs from the other villagers, refusing to use her father's position as the village's head to purchase them. The day came, and they were gone. Someone else had bought it. She was crushed at the time, but did not show it until that evening, when Zelos gave her the baos as her birthday gift. She had never seen her father laugh so much due to the scene that ensued. Zelos, on the other hand, was completely stumped as to why she was so angry. He thought she wanted them.

'_What was the point of this? What is my purpose?_'

Irelia chuckled at the memory, quickly being brought back to the present by the disembodied voice. Fragments of carbonized wood were stuck in the ground still, old support stakes for the stall.

Nothing more to reminisce here about, and she still had a little ways to go.

Eventually, she finally made it to the front doors of her old home. One could barely call it lumber, never mind a home. Nothing remained of it. Despite being burnt down to its very core, she could see where their animals used to be stabled, she could see where their kitchen used to be, where her room was, she could even see the flower garden that her father tended to so much. It was one of the last remnants of their mother, now reduced to cinder. Irelia did not bother looking at their fields, it would not change what would be found.

'_My home. My calling._'

Here was home, so where was he? Was she wrong? She could still sense the presence, but being in this destroyed village started to unsettle her. Even her sword started to mirror her discomfort. It seemed to whine, wanting her to move away from this place.

She obliged, and started to walk once more, though this time it was aimless. Where could he be? There were not many hiding places here, and why would he hide from her?

Irelia stood in place, trying to solve the statement that had brought her here. Where else could she look?

The lake.

Irelia's lips moved, uttering a quiet laugh. When they were children, they used to call it their home away from home. They could relax there, play there, not worry about training there. It was their sanctuary. She started to make her way towards the lake, the last location she could think that had any meaning to him and her.

It did not take long. Half an hour of walking at most. She stopped at the top of the cliff that extended over the lake itself. The hill leading up to this precipice gently sloped down to a secondary hill, which had a much steeper incline towards the lake itself. She used this route out of habit more than practicality. Irelia did not peer over the side as of yet, taking in the memory of her time here, soaking in it.

Here, the first time Zelos brought her to the lake, he jumped off the cliff into the lake. She followed him afterwards, despite how frightening the drop was. When she hit the water, she thought it would be a funny joke to stay submerged, swim behind her brother and surprise him. Never in her life had she ever seen him so scared. Looking back at it, Irelia could easily guess why, though she did not understand at the time.

With a single step, she was at the edge of the ledge. Irelia peered down, and saw at the bank of the murky, disgusting body of water, there was a man looking out at it.

Irelia quickly raced down, memories flooding her mind.

After they had gone for a swim, she found an irelia blossom. The trees they grew from were a rarity, and only seen around the Placidium due to the Nexus empowering the soil's fertility there. They had gone to investigate, when young Irelia found a gosling.

Irelia slid down the steep hill. She could see patches of grass was still growing here, some foliage here and there, as well as a few skeletons stripped of flesh.

The memory continued to play in her mind.

The gosling's mother found her and attacked her. Not quite sure how to react, young Irelia tried punching it to no avail. Loud screeches, honks and squawks filled her ears, feathers and wings covered her eyes and she was not sure what to do. That was when Zelos peeled it off of her and threw the goose away. Instead of being deterred, it flew back at him and attacked him once more. Back then, they called it the "_battle of the bear cub_". It was because Zelos was too embarrassed to admit that he got beat by a goose, and told that lie to their father. Still, she remembered the look on his face, his smile, despite the blood that flowed from behind his ear. The young boy, holding his bruised wrist as the flustered goose waddled away, satisfied with her physical victory, and he satisfied with his own personal victory.

"Irelia? Is that you?"

The disembodied voice rang out again. '_I am whole._'

She had made her way to the bank of the lake. Zelos turned around, and for a split moment, she saw the young boy looking at her, grinning , asking, "_Are you alright, Irelia?_"

The disembodied voice and Zelos sounded oddly-

Irelia blinked. Her brother's robes were darker, more crusted. The once emerald, turqoise robes were now a muddled, dark sanguine. A strange coating was evident, as though his clothing had been soiled by some viscous liquid. In his hand he gripped a Manamune, caked in dried blood. He was looking at her, dead pan facial expression save for the strange grin plastered on his face. "Are you alright, Irelia? The trip here wasn't bad?"

Zelos' Manamune hissed at her, '_A foe. Kill her. Aim for her neck._'

That was the source of the voice.

'_Let me taste blood once more. Spill hers. No hesitation._'

Irelia's sword violently reacted. It started to crackle with vermillion energy, as though it were responding to the voice.

Zelos nodded and looked around, observing the scene about them. With a heavy sigh, he planted the sword into the ground in front of him. The voice was stifled. Eventually, after clicking his tongue in slow succession and staring at the sword for far too long, Zelos looked her in the eye.

It unnerved her.

"Zelos?"

"So, I guess we have some things we need to talk about, eh?"


	22. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"Zelos," Irelia's tone lowered, nearly a growl, her eyes wide open and focused on her sanguine stained brother's clothing. "Whose blood is that?"

Zelos grinned and shook his finger at her as he started to pace. "Does that really matter, Irie? Blood is blood, after all. Does it matter whose blood it is?"

"Zelos. Whose blood?"

"Doesn't matter," he replied. "The point is that it's blood, right?"

Irelia balled her hands into tight fists. "Zelos, I will not ask again. Whose blood stains your clothes and your sword?"

Zelos clicked his tongue a few times, and then looked at his sister, a large grin on his face. "I spoke to Riven."

Her face drained itself of all color. No, he couldn't have, could he? Not Zelos, not to her. She made a good impression on him, right?

"Quick question, Irie," he rolled his head about, almost satisfied with what he had said. "When were you going to tell me?"

"I was going to tell-"

"Too late now!" he chirped. Zelos burst into a fit of laughter. "I spoke to good ol' Riven, Riven the Butcher, Nevir, whatever. She had quite a lot to say, Irie, _quite_ a lot! So! The woman who destroyed our village, the woman who did yadda yadda, and you befriended her! I mean, I always wanted your sense of humor to improve, but..." He took a break here, wiping a tear away from his face due to his merriment. "Befriending a monster? Pretty stupid."

A crackle of vermillion energy tore across the face of Irelia's sword while she kept her usual stoic composure.

This earned another bout of laughter from Zelos. "Oh no, Irelia's mad! What's going to happen if I make her _too_ angry?"

"She was my friend, Zelos..." Irelia's emerald eyes lost their liveliness. They became dark, cold, staring at her brother. "How could you? H-"

"Have you seen this lake?" Zelos' attention span was seemingly sporadic, he was still grinning, still laughing. "Look at it, a complete mess. I see some dead fish floating riiiight over there!"

He pointed and true to his word, fish carcasses floated about. They were barely fish, preserved by whatever chemicals that seeped from the village into the body of water.

"Let's go for a walk, huh, Irie? This is way too depressing."

Zelos grabbed his sword and took off sprinting.

'_Butcher her, slaughter her! Blood! More blood! Always more bl-_'

He stabbed the rock face of the bluff they had leapt off of so many years ago. Zelos quickly climbed, using the sword to pull himself up the rocks. The Manamune could only spout the occasional threat as it was stabbed repeatedly to help secure his ascent.

"Zelos, what are you doing? You're being ridicu-"

"Of course it's stupid!" he fired back a wild laugh at her. "That's life, Irie! Life is ridiculous! Life is one long, ridiculous, awful joke!"

Irelia decided to ascend the way she came, the steep hill. By the time she ran up it, she saw Zelos already running towards the village. She took off in a sprint after him.

"Come on, come on!" Zelos taunted as he ran backwards, staring at her with that same grin. Despite not seeing the rotting, broken wagon, he jumped up and evaded the obstacle with ease. "No reason to lag behind!"

"Zelos!" Her voice cracked. Something started to churn in her stomach, an unfamiliar emotion. "What is wrong with you?!"

He finally skidded to a halt in front of their old home. Zelos waited for some scant seconds for Irelia to catch up. He rested the Manamune against one of the few still standing support beams for the house, whistled and nodded at the feat his sister performed. "You've gotten much faster, Irelia. Amazing. Really, it is."

"Zelos! Why did you hurt Riven?" Irelia was hunched over, her brow knitted, her lips drawn back into a snarl. "Why would you do that?"

"Why wouldn't I? Isn't that my duty?" Zelos snapped his fingers and pointed at Irelia, crowing at her. "My turn for a question, sis: Why did you make that promise to Riven?"

Irelia stepped back, blinking a few times. "Promise...? You, asked her? She told you?"

"Of course she did, why wouldn't she in our final moments?" Zelos waved a disciplinary finger at her face. "Ah ah ah! You're avoiding the question! Why'd you make that promise to Riven?"

Irelia's emerald eyes bore into Zelos, who seemed so happy and so giddy with himself. "Because I believed in her. Because she became something better than what she was. Instead of being a monster, she became a person. I made that promise because she would no longer be the person whom I had grown to respect and care for as a friend."

"Grown to respect and care...Irelia, are you mentally damaged?" Zelos' voice took a sharp turn, nearly screeching at her. "She slaughtered our friends! Our neighbors! Do you respect her because you can hold hands and go la la la we killed a lotta people together?!"

Irelia blinked. She was taken off guard, and so, she reacted out of emotion. "How...why would compare her to me like that?" She screamed at him, her swords roaring to life and pointed at her overly calm brother. "She realized what she was doing was wrong and wanted to make things right! How dare you?"

"And you haven't? That wasn't what I was insinuating, Irie, sheesh. So, that high horse? Off of it, shoo sh-"

"STOP! MOCKING! ME!"

Irelia was breathing heavily, staring at Zelos with empty eyes, her swords nearly enveloped by her vermillion chi. "Stop it! Stop mocking me! Stop making light of this! You killed my friend because she did something atrocious?! What did she do so wrong?! She killed our friends and neighbors, yes! I killed hers! I killed mothers, fathers, aunts and uncles! I killed their children and cousins and whatever gods damned label you can put on them! I killed them all! No mercy! No second chance! Nothing! I painted the entire field in their blood! Is killing the only reason she deserves death? If so, then so do I!"

* * *

_Battle of Placidium_

_A young Irelia walked towards the battlefield, the sound of wood crunching underneath her heel reverberated through the still air. The Ionians were being pushed back despite their gallant charge. The Noxians were advancing when both sides saw a this young girl walk towards them. She was the one who had killed one of their necromancers. She could hear a gruff order be given, and a hail of arrows were fired at her. She was to be made an example by the sun blocking barrage. Irelia could hear each and every one of them scream for blood. Many of the arrows landed, though not one harmed Irelia. The arrows that did not land were suspended mid-air by an invisible force, creating a pathway for Irelia to walk through. A flick of her wrist sent them flying back to their owners, pointed end first. The first screams of pain made the Noxians rush this young girl en masse._

_Spears and pikes were stabbed at her in an attempt to kill her before she could come any closer. Irelia glided by them effortlessly, flowing like a coursing river, and as she flowed past them she felt Noxian blood splash her face. She did not retreat, she did not relent, she continued her walk down the battlefield, twenty men decapitated and dismembered in her wake. _

_Noxian cavalrymen charged, lances aimed to pierce her chest. Her sword split apart, chi energy blitzing around it, and cleaved horses and riders in twain as she continued her advance unabated. Gore splashed on her, Irelia still walked forward, not bothering to wipe it off her face. She barely even noticed. The Noxian cohorts were now thoroughly perturbed by the sight of this young girl butchering them without raising a hand, and with the pressure from the Ionian forces, they were not sure what to do now. That was when the Zaunite war machines rumbled into view and into position. They had finally come, the promised tanks that would annihilate the Placidium. Not even this deterred Irelia. Though they belched hellfire and smoke at her, she continued her advance._

_Irelia looked at one of the machines, green fire churned from its engines. It was the same kind of machine that destroyed her village. She pointed one finger at the cockpit, and a single blade materialized into existence in front of her. It was a vibrant, glowing vermillion. Her first chi forged blade, dubbed the Transcendent Blade technique. She did not know how she knew it, but the memories of its process raced through her mind as if it had always been there, as if she had always known. It shot forth. Instead of clanging off the protective hull and glass, the blade flew through as though nothing tried to hinder its path. Irelia could feel the life of the driver slip away, and the machine veered towards the other Zaunite war machines. It crashed, spewing the emerald flames everywhere. Irelia finally stopped walking when she was well behind the Noxian lines, having cleaved a pathway through the middle of them. The green fires of the hextech tank danced behind her as her doll like expression changed to one of absolute determination. _

_Then she charged._

_The Noxian infantry did a knee jerk response and rushed towards her in their attempt to overwhelm a young girl with sheer numbers. Noxian men and women were dying so quickly they barely had time to scream before they hit the dirt. Blood ran freely, creating a river of gore, crimson and metal shrapnel from shattered weaponry and armor. Some of the Noxians and Ionians actually stopped their fighting with one another and watched in awe her four blades cut into Noxians and Zaunites alike with deadly precision. Irelia's empty hands were just a ploy, as she caught any blade or weapon that came close to her and impaled their owners with fluid techniques and skills. Irelia vaulted herself over the enemy forces and rained death from above. Their own Noxian forged, Noxian owned weaponry had followed her to the skies and were now used to slaughter their forces via a rainstorm of metal, blades and death. _

_Once she landed, chi forged blades started to encircle her as she drove deeper and deeper into the cohort. Each stroke was expertly executed, each strike flinging crimson onto the field like a master artist stroking his brush onto a canvas._

_In less than five minutes, an entire cohort of Noxians lay dead._

_Irelia took a moment to calculate where her next target was when a blade was plunged into her side. She did not react, a simple glare was all that was needed to stop the sword from cutting any deeper into her. A single twitch of her eyes and the weapon promptly withdrew and embedded itself into its owner's heart. The sword had despised its master, for using it the way it did, she decided to grant the sword its burning desire. _

_Irelia was constantly surrounded by enemy blades. It was strange how each of them missed her by just a hair, as if they were guided by an invisible hand while she continued to cleave through them._

_The Noxian forces were in complete disarray while the Ionians started to push forward. Seeing that they were being pushed back by a lone little girl slaughtering their army, and all of the Ionian forces, the Noxians attempted to flee. The Zaunite war machines were nearly spinning in circles, trying to avoid their contractor's armies. They were clearly unsure of what they should do. This was quickly rectified by the familiar face of Master Yi. He leaped from Zaunite war machine to Zaunite war machine, killing the crew in quick succession. The confusion Irelia provided was all he needed to strike efficiently at the muscle of the Zaunite/Noxian army._

_Eventually the Noxians decided to try to retreat, but Irelia pursued them still. They would not escape her. No, they did not deserve to escape, they did not deserve to live. One man, missing his arm, writhing on the ground in agony and his own blood managed to catch sight of Irelia. He gurgled a plea, his eyes overflowing with tears. "Please, don't-!" his head flew off in mid-sentence. _

_Irelia continued running after the remnants, stabbing into the backs of the Noxian cowards that dared to flee. A man stopped and turned to face her, a voice cried out, "Dad! No!"_

"_Go!" He stood his ground for a full second. Irelia ran by him, the sound of a circular saw ripped through the air as the man, his shield and his armor were torn to shreds. _

_The man's son turned around, charging and screaming bloody murder at Irelia, his weapon raised above his head. The young man, full of sound and fury, cried out in pain as Irelia ran him through with his own weapon. His head fell to the side, his body convulsing as his death rattle escaped his lips. _

_Irelia paid no attention to him, stepping onto the corpse and walking over him. She could see that there were more Noxians running, and so she took off after them yet again. Irelia was not done yet, not with them. They would all pay._

* * *

Zelos' grin instantly disappeared. His eyes burned with anger, his voice matching his expression. "Now I know you're being stupid." He crossed his arms, any sign of his relaxed composure now gone. "So what if you did? They were invading. They were the aggressors. They were the ones who wronged us. What you did was necessary."

"That's all it was!" Irelia yelled back. Her voice lost any sense of her usual formality. "That's all it was, Zelos! Necessary! Here I am, the war hero! Here I am, the woman who slaughtered them! The one necessary!"

"So why Riven, hm?" Zelos tilted his head, staring at her. "I'm not sure still, really. Help clarify things here for me, Irelia. Did she save you in the war? Did she buy you some great pastries, are you in love with her? Or maybe, you think the two of you are similar in some way? I think it's this. If so, what is it that makes you and her so similar that you can relate to her on such a level? You did what was necessary, what she did was aggression. What she did was cause, you reacted. If they had not caused the war, you would not have reacted. So why did you befriend her out of every Noxian, hm? Why her?"

A hard swallow. Irelia was not sure how to respond to Zelos. She had only seen him this angry once before, the day their father died. She screamed at him, she yelled and cried, she wanted to see their father but Zelos would not allow her. Irelia, in a fit of emotion, called him heartless. That was the first and last time she had ever seen him truly angry.

Was he angry at her? It did not feel that way. Her sword quietly hummed in her mind the same words he had said before, he was the sheath. If that was the case, then what was going on? This did not make sense. She would have to play whatever game he had in mind a little longer.

Irelia gave her head a quick shake, her blades whining ever so slightly as they reassembled themselves behind her. She attempted to maintain her composure once more. "...Do you know what we gained from the war, Zelos? Do you know what Ionia gained from the combat, the bloodshed, the destruction, the losses?"

"Obviously not you. You were already there, right? In Ionia, in mind and in spirit. I know that much, my geography isn't that bad." Zelos shook his head. His left eyebrow twitched three times before he spoke. "Do you care, Irelia?"

Irelia raised an eyebrow, she was confused by the sudden topic changing question. "Care? About what?"

"About anything," he shrugged. "Honestly, do you give even the faintest damn, Irie? You only did what's necessary, right?"

"What...are you insinuating?"

Zelos whistled, went quiet as though he fell into deep thought, and eventually replied, "I'm saying maybe you enjoy this."

"Enjoy what?"

"I really have to spell it out for you, huh? I'm being that cryptic?" Zelos swiveled his finger about the entire field. "This. All of this. This death, this destruction, you enjoy it, right?"

A burst of laughter roared from Irelia. She nearly fell to the ground, half sobbing, half laughing at such a statement. "Why would you say something like that? How _dare_ you?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, sis, at any p-"

"YOU ARE WRONG!" Irelia closed the distance between the two of them and grabbed Zelos' gi. She could feel the crusted blood snap and crackle on her fingers. "I do not enjoy _this_! I did not enjoy doing what I did! I do not like killing, I do not like hurting, I am not a sadist! I am not a sociopath! I did what was necessary, I won a war that made absolutely no gains and with all of my strength I could do nothing to move the Ionian people to win back our territories! I never knew our mother, I lost father when I was ten years old, _you_ disappeared, presumed _dead_, and I couldn't defend our own village! Look at this, Zelos! _Look_ at it! I failed, Zelos! I failed! I only succeed when I'm necessary, and am I necessary anymore? There is no war! There is no fighting! I'm going to die soon anyways, so why not use me to my fullest purpose?! If it were up to me I would have killed Syndra and tried to give our people a semblance of peace instead of a looming threat, not because I enjoyed a single moment of harming her! If you had not shown up, I would have done what is necessary!"

"And you would have hated yourself for it, more so than you apparently do. Not the point, at this time. If you're not a sadist, if you do not enjoy harming others, then why are you hurting me?" he asked in a calm tone. Zelos reached over and grabbed Irelia's hands. She flinched, they were as cold as death. "Is it necessary? Irie, answer me this, please: What do you want for me?"

"I want you to be happy you idiot! That hasn't changed!" she yelled back at him. Her sword inched closer, hovering near the two siblings. "I want you to be happy!"

"And is this making me happy?" Zelos tilted his head, confusion evident in his tone. "Is the fact that you're willing to let the lineage die with you making me happy? How would you be able to train a successor within a year, Irelia? I assume this is what you thought, because I certainly don't have the same knowledge you do of the Hiten style, its skills and techniques, yet you want me to have a family. What then, will happen, when you die, and I have a family? My knowledge, let's be honest, it's not as-"

"You're Zelos!" she cried. "You're my brother! You trained with father far longer! You could carry some form of-"

"Some form," he interrupted. "Not the true art. It would be changed, shifted into something different. It wouldn't be the Hiten style anymore."

"Good! Then no one else will have to suffer like we do!" Irelia was shaking. Anger? Frustration? She was not sure. She tended to keep herself calm, collected, but he was making it increasingly more difficult to do so. "Then-"

"You don't get to make that choice, Irie, only the successor does."

Zelos shoved Irelia off of him. The only reason she did not lose balance was because her sword caught her. Irelia did not know how to react to this scenario, it was surreal to her. Zelos reached over and grabbed the Manamune. "Funny thing, Irelia, very funny thing. In about ten minutes, the Kinkou will descend, and they will see who the winner is between us." He cricked his neck. "Now it's my turn, Irelia, to say something. What I want, is for _you_, to be happy. Now, how can I do this? I of course, have to ask you this: Who are you, Irelia?"

"...What?" Irelia's face went blank. She was not sure how to react. That was a stupid-

"Who are you, Irelia?" he pressed again. "Who is Irelia to you? Me? Who Zelos is to me, is an older brother who cares about his little sister, who will do anything and everything for her, to make her happy. Who is Irelia to you?" Zelos drummed his fingers on the flat of the Manamune, each strike making it scream at its wielder for teasing it so. "Who did you want to become? Is this what you wanted to do with your life? Are you where you expected you wanted to be in however many years? What do you want, Irelia?"

Irelia could not continue eye contact. She actually gave in and allowed her gaze to fall down to the ground. "...I want you to be happy."

"What else?"

"...I..."

"What. Else? I would like a girl with some wide hips and thick luscious hair, I'd like a few million coins, I'd like to travel around Valoran a bit because I've been everywhere else but there. I'd like to see if it's possible to go flying! Who are you, Irelia? What are your desires? Do you want to die? Maybe you do, which of course, would mean you're laughing in the face of everyone who tried helping you."

Irelia's head snapped upwards. She re-established eye contact with her brother. "Does it matter what I want anymore? I want people to be happy. I want my friends to be happy, I want you to be happy, without me. I don't want to die, Zelos...but it's going to happen. It's-"

Zelos sliced the air, a blade wind actually pushing her long hair away from her face. She could see a few strands float down in front of her. "Of course it will happen, but you do not need to accept it in such a way. Besides, that's not all that you want, is it? Come on, Irelia, tell me the truth. What do you want? What was it that Udyr fought for? Was that a lie as well, hence what happened to the charm I made you?"

Irelia's hand instinctively fell to her fauld, the metal plate protecting the bag she carried it in.

"Why's it broken, Irie? Don't think I didn't see when you first showed me. I can see more than you think, I know more than you think, and I saw how someone repaired it. So! Was it a fit of jealousy? Maybe you had what you wanted all this time, and didn't tell anyone."

"No...It's-"

"Was it a fit of anger because I wasn't there? I can't blame you for that, but does that mean you hate me Irelia?"

Her eyes sharpened. Her tone was angrier."Stop putting words in m-"

"Then talk, tell me, what happened to the wooden charm, Irie? What happened after the battle, Irelia?" Zelos tapped the Manamune on his shoulder, staring at her all the while, his left eyebrow twitching three times. "Akali asked me to ask Soraka, but I want to hear from you. What happened after the battle, Irelia? What was it that broke the charm? What could have caused you to break it? Was it because you wanted me to be happy? Did it make you happy? Was that your goal?"

* * *

_Battle of Placidium_

_Finally, the Noxian forces retreated. The Ionians continued to pursue them, and Irelia made her way back to the assassin and Soraka. The two of them watched Irelia advance. Almost every inch of her body was soaked in blood, from her gore covered boots to her long, once dark, hair. The assassin looked around, trying to find a countryman that remained, someone who could possibly aid her. _

_All that was left alive on this field was the assassin, Irelia, and Soraka._

_Soraka moved to stop the advancing young woman. She spoke in a calm voice. "Irelia, you have won the day. Let us return to the Placidium and have you washed and prepared for the assured celebration."_

_Irelia looked at the crimson haired assassin still on the ground. "No. There is one Noxian left to take care of."_

_"Irelia, that is unnec-"_

"_What? What is it? This is war. She is a casualty."_

_Soraka drew back. Irelia's eyes were burning with such hatred that it visibly shook Soraka. Irelia stepped towards the assassin, Soraka stood her ground. Irelia did not say a word, she shoved the Starchild off her feet and onto the ground. Her father's sword suspended itself in front of Soraka, stopping her from trying to interfere with what was going to happen next._

_Irelia knelt down and grabbed the hilt of the blade still embedded in the Noxian's shoulder. With one fluid pull she tore it out, a crimson trail following the entire length of the blade. The Noxian grunted in pain, she clutched her shoulder in agony. Irelia grabbed the wounded shoulder and pulled the Noxian to her feet. Shoving her backwards, Irelia started a new assault with a punch to the Noxian's abdomen. The sound of ribs cracking echoed in the air. Irelia kicked the Noxian's kneecap, feeling it dislocate under her boot._

_Irelia fired fist after fist at the Noxian's face and abdomen. The Noxian tried fighting back, but the blood loss from before was too much, and the clumsy swing she made resulted in having her forearm snapped. The Noxian woman staggered back, trying not to black out. Irelia grabbed her opponent's head who had blood freely flowing from her lips and swollen eye. Irelia's face and tone were expressionless. "Have you had enough?"_

"_Is that what your dad used to ask you after special hour every night?" the Noxian said before spitting on Irelia's face._

_The bloodied spit on Irelia's cheek barely mattered in color. Irelia touched the spit, looked at the Noxian, and promptly broke her jaw. The Noxian fell backwards onto the ground, Irelia reached down for one of the many knives strapped to the Noxian. Her fingers danced from one blade to the next, as though she were searching for a particular dagger. Eventually her fingers brushed across a knife that screamed for the death of the Starchild. Perfect. Irelia unsheathed it and tested its weight in her hand. She then looked at the Noxian, the same toneless voice and blank expression. "Why did you want to kill Soraka?"_

_The Noxian smiled as best as she could, "'CuzI was toldto. Thisiswar."_

_Irelia nodded, her thin lips parting into a smile. "That's right. It's just war. No one is hurt in war, no one is at fault in a war. Just soldiers, just peons, killing because someone told them to."_

_Irelia mounted the Noxian, who was chuckling at the Ionian girl all the while. "Y'gunna killme anytime soon or areyou tryin'to kissme?" Her jaw really inhibited her ability to speak, though it spoke volumes of her pain tolerance for her to be able to speak at all._

_"The moment you ask for it, I will kill you."_

_Before the Noxian could react, Irelia made a long, vertical incision from the left side of the Noxian's forehead and down past her cheekbone, taking special care to miss the eye. The knife just trailed over the eye, a millimeter or two lower and it would slice the iris. She wanted the Noxian to see all of this. The Noxian snorted and grunted in pain. "Isthatall? Fuckyou."_

_Irelia made the same incision again; she could feel the knife scrape bone. The Noxian gasped in a mixture of shock and pain._

_Irelia cocked her head at the Noxian in confusion. "Did that hurt?"_

_Soraka was standing up now. She tried to move forward to no avail, the sword had now split apart and pointed at her threateningly. No matter where she moved to, the blades stopped her. Any plea the Starchild made fell on deaf ears._

_Irelia sliced into the Noxian's face again, same wound, same length. She could feel the bone grind away under the edge of the blade. "You deserve this, you gods damned Noxian. Do you know what you people took from me?"_

_Another incision, deeper this time. The bone flaked into the wound. The Noxian squirmed in sheer, unrelenting agony, "You come here and you take my brother. You destroyed my village. You killed my friends. You killed my neighbors. You killed almost everyone I know." Irelia made another brutal incision, her tone unchanging. "And you were going to kill Soraka. And for what? For war? Because you were told to, right?"_

_The Noxian woman's body writhed in agony. She gritted her teeth, tears forming at the corner of her eyes despite her best efforts to withstand the pain. "Yes."_

_A small smile crept on Irelia's face, "That's all the reason you had to try and take everything away from me. We did not provoke an attack. You people got this idea that we would be an easy victory, show us your big weapons and we would let you walk over us. When that failed, you torch our homes, burn our families, torture our friends, enslave survivors! And for what reason? Because we said no to your rule? If I died, you would have killed Soraka. Ionia would have fallen, you would have killed the Elders, and you would have killed Karma. All because we said no to you. Is that right? The lives of those already fallen weren't enough, you had to try and kill more. You people wanted me dead because I wanted to fight back, right?"_

_Irelia deepened the incision. She lifted the fleshy edges of the wound, exposing the bloodied skull underneath it. She let the flesh fall back into place. She tapped the side of the Noxian's face with the flat of the blade. "Am I right?"_

_The Noxian struggled, tears forming. Irelia violently slashed at the wound, making the Noxian scream._

_"Tears aren't going to solve anything. Yes, or no?"_

_"Yes!"_

_Irelia patted the Noxian's head, her tone not denoting her condescending words. "Now, that wasn't so hard, was it? I know how much that must have hurt." Her voice quivered in pitch, becoming low and threatening., "I have only one last thing to ask of you."_

_The Noxian was breathing in and out heavily, looking at Irelia, waiting for her request._

_"Scream for me."_

_The Noxian tilted her head at Irelia, shocked. Did an Ionian really just say that?_

_"Katarina Du Couteau, the Sinister Blade. The reports do not lie. You said that statement to my countrymen before you killed them. Those you caught, you made sure their death was slow. They say you looked them in their eyes before you killed them, to see the last bit of fear in their life."_

_Irelia grabbed Katarina's neck, dragging her face towards her own, holding the bloodied Noxian a breath's away. Katarina stared at the cold, hate filled eyes of a young Ionian girl. "I will make you scream."_

_Irelia released Katarina's neck and went to work on the wound once more. Soraka tried calling out to Irelia, but the blades held her back from intervening once more. Her pleas fell on deaf ears, and she was forced to watch the scene unfold._

_Irelia remained quiet as she deepened each cut ever slightly more, Katarina was screaming in complete agony by the tenth incision. By the fifteenth incision the Noxian girl asked for enough. Irelia stopped, looking at Katarina with a confused expression. "Did you stop for my countrymen?"_

_Katarina was breathing heavily she was barely holding on to consciousness. Irelia's voice was oddly the only anchor the Noxian had to the waking world._

_"If you can name one countryman that you spared of mine when they asked for mercy, I will release you."_

_Katarina was panting too heavily to respond, her body convulsing and trying to escape Irelia to no avail. Irelia's lips parted into a smile once more as she hacked another incision into Katarina's face. Bone shards puffed out of the wound. "I thought so."_

_Seventeenth. Eighteenth. The nineteenth incision made Katarina scream out, "Youwin! Killme! Killme!"_

_Irelia cocked her head in confusion. "What? Did you say cut me? Cut me?" Irelia flipped the knife and let the tip drag deep into the incision._

_Katarina half screamed, half sobbed, "KILL ME!"_

_Irelia burst out in a fit of disturbing, giggling laughter. "Oh! Kill you!" She leaned in close to Katarina, "Not yet. I'm not done yet."_

_"Doit! Youwin!" she cried._

_Irelia looked at Katarina, tracing the knife along her body. "That is only one hundredth of the pain you Noxians made me feel. I'm not done yet." Irelia tapped the side of her own face thoughtfully; she rested the knife at Katarina's breast. Using one finger, she rotated the knife ever so slightly, not hard enough to penetrate the leather armor but hard enough to let Katarina feel the pressure of the tip. As Irelia tapped her cheek, she felt a new moisture precipitate on her face._

_She moved her hand into view. The moisture made the blood run off her fingers ever so slightly. A tear? No, it was spit from the Noxian. Had to be spit, she had no tears left in her. That is all, just this Noxian's insolent spit. Irelia wiped her face, the droplet smudging the blood on her face. She would not shed tears. Why was she questioning herself? She was doing what was right. This Noxian deserved this, and if she couldn't have the Butcher then this Noxian would supplement for her. They all deserved this. They all did this. This made sense, this was reasonable, she was not wrong. Right, Zelos? She reached to her neck to gain some confidence, but felt nothing there._

_Irelia shot off of Katarina like a bullet. She fell down to the earth and started to wildly scratch at it. Katarina didn't care to ask why Irelia released her. She took the opportunity and reached down with her good arm, snapped her knee cap back into place and promptly disappeared. Irelia's blades pulled away from Soraka, letting her finally approach the young Ionian._

_Soraka had tears running down her face, she moved to try and reach for Irelia but stayed back for her own safety. Her blades were furiously stabbing the earth, tearing soil out in large, frustrated clumps. Irelia was in near hysterics, her breath hiccupping. "Zelos! Zelos? Where are you Zelos?"Irelia's fingernails scratched at the earth so hard that they started to tear off. Irelia crawled in the dirt, still pitifully calling out for her missing brother. "Zelos? Zelos!"_

_Soraka watched the pathetic display as Irelia crawled through the battlefield and the gore, screaming her brother's name. She finally stopped when something cut her finger. Irelia looked down and saw little wood fragments stuck in the earth, a leather string mashed underneath a boot print. Irelia dug at the earth and retrieved every piece of the wooden charm, from the smallest splinter to the largest chunk. She rocked her body with it, "Zelos…don't leave me again…You promised you wouldn't leave me…You promised… Zelos…I won…you can come back now…Don't be angry, please don't…Don't leave me again…Just come back…"_

* * *

Irelia looked away, not meeting Zelos' eyes. "Some people think that I died that day when the Noxian necromancer tried to tear my soul out. That I ceased being Irelia, and became a puppet to the will of my blades." She shook her head, still maintaining eye contact with Zelos. "Only a part of me died that day, the day the Will of the Blades was born."

He was not sure how this pertained to his question, and waited for her to continue. His left eyebrow twitched three times.

"When I fell, I heard a voice. It...it sounded like you. Whatever Soraka did, it sounded like you. Father was there...Mother was there, wherever I was. They were there, and they were smiling at me. Maybe it was the afterlife, but it didn't matter. I was at peace, Zelos. I was content. But, I wasn't done, not yet. Father wanted me to go back, and he said if I did, he would show me the true form of the Hiten style. I...I didn't, at first. I thought maybe, maybe it was alright to rest. My countrymen needed me, I could hear their screams. I decided I would try, and so, I did, and nearly failed." Irelia's shoulders quaked. Her eyes actually brimmed with tears, ones she brushed away with the back of her hand, quickly drying her eyes. "Then I heard your voice. You were there, or so I thought. I open my eyes, and I see Soraka, and some shadow falling down on her. You weren't there. You weren't there..."

"I don't know when it broke. I had it on me on moment, the next moment it was gone. After the battle, I went back for the assassin that attacked Soraka. I beat her nearly to death, pinned her to the ground, and I scarred her face. I carved the same wound twenty times over in the same place. When I moved on to another section of her, I could feel...feel tears, forming at my face. It...it wasn't me, it wasn't who i wanted to be. But she deserved it, yes? She deserved what I was doing to her. I needed to reassure myself, to make sure that you would approve of it, of what I was doing. I reach up, and you're missing. You're not there."

Irelia held her hands up, and showed at the ends of her fingernails, lightly discolored scar tissue could be seen. It meshed so well with the rest of her skin tone, that it was barely noticeable. "I lost your charm. I scrounged in the dirt for it, looking for it, I was screaming the entire time, 'Zelos! Zelos!' as though you could hear me. My life's goal was not to hurt you, nor forget you, Zelos. I did not break your charm on purpose. That was an accident, and one I can never take back no matter how hard I tried to fix it." The Ionian woman wrung her hands, seemingly ashamed of the confession she was about to make. "I...I just wanted my brother back. I wanted him to be there. I wanted to show him that...that I didn't fail him. I kept my promise. What I wanted...all my life, what I wanted, was for my brother to be proud of me. To walk beside him, and have him see me as his equal."

Zelos nodded and extended his right arm out. His left hand was free of holding the weapon, and he gave her a quick pity clap via slapping his right forearm. His left eye twitched three times. "Irelia, you could be a serial killer and I'd be proud of you. I'd help you bury the bodies. However, what I'm not proud of, is the fact that you're lying to me."

Before she could reply, he clarified himself. "You didn't see the afterlife or whatever." Zelos pointed at her floating sword. "_Odayakana Chō_ told you, didn't it? A Hiten user was needed once more. That's how you figured out half the crap about the Hiten art, that sword told you. It told you and you were able to unlock its potential, even at that age. Truly amazing."

Zelos pulled his arm back and started to spin the Manamune in hand. "So! It spoke to you, right? Come on, don't act like I'm crazy, no point in hiding it now!"

"Don't...don't be silly, Zelos. Swords can't talk," she blatantly lied.

"Yeah, knives can't either. So what has the sword told you, Irelia? Hm?"

The young woman looked at her sword, then back at Zelos. "Does it matter?"

"Yeah...it does." Zelos' voice and entire demeanor softened. "I'm sorry, Irelia, for doing that to you. For disbelieving you. That is one thing I wish to apologize for, among many others. I'm sorry for leaving you, I'm sorry for that time I struck you, I'm sorry I ate your cookie that dad had reserved for you, I'm sorry I didn't realize all of this sooner. I'm sorry you suffered this long, but I can end it. I can make you happy. I can finally make you happy."

'_Attack already, go for the throat.'_

"We never said that you were the successor. That choice was never made. So, what do I want? The big end result, what will fulfill my life? I want you to be happy. Therein lies our problem. How do we settle this? You want me to be happy, you want to be happy, we're both successors, and so I offer you a proposition!" He tapped his forehead with the flat of the blade.

'_So familiar...need new blood_.'

"Make _me_ the successor, and you can live the rest of your life in peace, as Irelia Lito, the woman who is combating an illness instead of Irelia the Will of the Blades, the Captain of the Ionian guard, the League champion and so on. You can find a nice hubby, have a kid, maybe live a bit longer than a year, and be at peace. No more fighting, cause fighting, that's not who you are, are you? I can live with that." Zelos flashed a grin at her. "A fairly simple deal, yes? You're happy, living a longer life, I'm happy that you're happy, and we all win."

"That's not what I want, Zelos," she said without hesitation. "I want you to be happy. I don't want you to be sick like me, I don't want you to become bar-"

"Hey, here's some news for you, Irie, you can't tell me what to do," he snapped back. "You want me to be happy? You're giving up! You're throwing in the towel! You're saying this is it, I'm dying anyways, what does it matter? Have you thought of all the people you'd be hurting if you died so soon? All your guards love you, Irelia. I love you. Soraka, Karma, Master Yi? They love you. Even the frosty Akali loves you. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Wukong dumped me for you, and Udyr wanted you to be his greatest student while Lee asked you to be his pupil. They all love you, Irelia, in their own way. And here you are, saying that you want me to be happy, and that's it. You're done. It's over. You can relax finally. How is your death going to make me happy?"

"Death comes for everyone, Zelos, there's no way to prevent it. So what if I lived another year?" Irelia chuckled and shook her head, her tone becoming morbid. "I'm a dead woman walking. I can't have a family, I can't act on my feelings, I can't do anything for myself. I tried, oh I did. I tried, people tried for me. Udyr tried, to let me be me. Akali did, Soraka, Karma, they all did. In the end, it doesn't matter. If I could sit by and watch, and see others trample over us, then maybe I could have lived a longer life." The young woman threw her hands up in frustration. "Others may be content dying in their beds decades from now, but would you be willing to trade for all of those days that lead up to your death for the price of an atrocity? I will not. Karma, Soraka, Yi, my guards, my soldiers, all of them will be able to live on without me. They're strong, I know they are, but you...You're my brother. You need to be strong, and I need to know you'll be alright without me. I need to know you'll be happy. I'm so...so happy you're home, Zelos. That's the only reason why I can find any peace in this."

Irelia took a step forward, which earned her a blade pointed at her throat. "You have the same cracks as I do. You're...you're so like me, Zelos. Put the sword down, there's no point to this. You...you can avoid my fate. You can be more. You can be h-"

"Make me successor and I assure you, I will put the sword down. If you don't, then first to draw blood is the new successor." Zelos' grin disappeared once more. "You will live. No matter the cost. That's all that matters to me."

"Zelos...They love you too. They-"

"They can all go head first burning into a ditch and die screaming," he sharply replied. "No one, absolutely no one is above you, Irelia. You. You are all that I have left, and all that I have. All of Ionia could have been slaughtered but if you lived, I would have been just as happy. You are not going to die in a year, Irelia. Do you hear me?"

Irelia stepped back. That look in his eyes...that tone...what was this? Who was this person before her?

"What's wrong, Irelia?" Zelos slapped the blade down on his left palm. He sliced it cleanly open and wetted the crimson crusted metal with fresh blood. "Have I said something weird?"

'_More. More!'_

"Last chance, Irelia, name me successor, or I will be named successor by right."

Irelia closed her eyes, taking a breath in. When she opened them, they lost all emotion, all life. "Then make it by right."

Zelos slammed the Manamune into the ground in front of him, making Irelia jump back in preparation of a strike.

"One thing I learned, in all my travels, what a wise Lokfaran man said to me?" Zelos twisted the blade, a surge of vile, violent chi encapsulated the blade. It burned bright with orange, then quickly changed into some strange, bluish flames that settled onto the surface of the metal. "The good that men do? Is often interred with their bones..."

The blade of the Manamune shifted, changed. It started to become thicker, more viciously curved, more elongated. Irelia grabbed her head and screamed out in pain. Pain? What was this? It was not physical.

"But the evil that men do?" Zelos stared at the transformed blade with bored eyes. It was not a surprise to him. "That, lives on."

It was voices, all yelling, all screaming, all thirsting for blood. What was this blade? What was this? She...remembered this sensation. Many years ago, many many years ago. She felt something like this, right? How come this was so familiar? She knew this sensation. It was a single burst, a single death knell for thousands.

Irelia's sword split apart and surged forward with vermillion energy, aimed at Zelos. Before she could react to stop them, Zelos raised his hand and the blades stopped. The faintest amount of orange energy started to emanate from the weapon towards his fingertips.

"Sh sh sh, it's alright. It's between me and her, swordy. Alright? No need for you to get involved."

The blades tilted every which way, then drew back to Irelia. Zelos chuckled and pointed at her sword, "Y'see that? Dad's blade knows that it can't attack another would be successor. So, you're already handicapped. I've got this in the bag."

Irelia straightened her posture, the voices constantly ringing in her ears, she could barely hear her own thoughts. The whistle of wind, and a dagger was thrown to her feet. Her eyes focused on it, trying to make sense. "Since..when can you-"

"Your old training dagger, Irie! I brought that here just for you. Come on, let's make it like old times, when we were young. The only difference is that the stakes are higher."

Zelos paced around Irelia, humming aloud. "No secret Hiten techniques, Irelia. I'm not going to shorten your lifespan or I really screwed up."

Irelia grabbed the dagger and pointed it at Zelos, barely able to stand. The dagger's warm emotions ran through her fingertips. They felt familiar. She could swear she smelled sap on its edge. That did not matter at the moment. "You...You already did." Irelia hated telling him the truth, but she had to let him know his hypocrisy. "By making me angry, by making me yell. By making me-"

Hyena laughter interrupted her. He shook his head and tapped the side of his head, yelling at her. "That's not what's killing you! Emotions? Are you serious?! Look at you, Irelia! Look at the facade! Tell me this is you happy! Tell me this is you content with yourself! Tell me this is what you wanted to do when you got older! You never answered me, Irelia! What were your aspirations? Is this how you viewed yourself at this age?"

Zelos swung his blade down at her unprotected back.

Irelia spun around in time and easily caught his blade with her hand. Her eyes were lit with life, focused like a hawk on him. "You want to know, Zelos? What did I want in life?" Her fingers held the steel easily. "I wanted to run alongside you, Zelos. I wanted you to look at me as your equal for once."

His left eyebrow twitched three times. Zelos pulled the blade back and leaped away from her. "That's it? Pft!" He burst into a fit of laughter, his left eyebrow twitching wildly. "Alright then, come on. Go ahead. Prove you're my equal. Dagger, against the Muramana. Younger sister, older brother. I'm not going to hold back on my next strike, Irelia." He shifted his feet, took a stance and stared at her. "Next st-"

Zelos was barely able to parry the blow Irelia made. In fact, he outright failed to do so. Irelia had struck his sword arm so hard that the blade nearly flew out of his grip. Only by leaping away did he manage to escape her vertical slash at his exposed flank. Unfortunately, it still caught his leg.

"I have won," she stated in a flat tone. She sounded like an automaton, no life, no care. This hurt her worse than it hurt him. "I drew blood. You're acting strange, Zelos. Please, talk to me, we don't have to fight about this. You just...you just need to accept it, brother." Irelia closed her eyes, her tone resuming its usual cold formality. "I am still going to die, this fight was meaningless. If you had taken me seriously, then I would not feel as insulted as I do now."

Zelos whistled back at her, drawing his torn hakama to the side. "Better take a looksee, Irelia. I'm not bleeding."

Her eyes snapped open. She stared at the wound she thought she made. His hakama was torn open, only to reveal makeshift armor on his legs. Made from carved wood, Irelia's strike elicited a deep gash on the carved shin guard. "Knowing that you could probably hear the metal from armor better, I thought to myself, 'how can I make myself less readable, less bulky but have some protection?' Well, then the good ol' memories of dryads made me go, 'why not wood?"

Zelos grabbed his gi and whipped it off, making Irelia's eyes go wide. His body was lacerated with vicious cuts, barely sealed by stitches and some odd looking gel substance. The scars from frostbite were most clearly evident on his pectorals and his abdominals, his nipples completely missing and most of his skin discolored. His forearms were both covered with wooden arm guards strapped together by cloth. Irelia's keen eyes and memory would recognize the cloth as the same color as the one Riven wore the last time she was at...the...Placidium...

"Come on, Irelia, it's only fair. You came armored, I protected myself, so let's go!" Zelos took a stance yet again, staring at his sister with a sinister smile. His sword, that grotesque blade, was screaming for her blood, for the deaths of many. Man, women, children, it wanted to feast on them all. Was this who he was now?

"...This is not what I want, Zel-"

"Since when did you ever get what you fucking wanted, Irelia?!" he screamed back at her in a half manic voice. "Since when did you get what _you_ wanted, Huh? When?!"

"...I had a friend, that I wanted. She gave me hope..." Irelia actually shed tears. She hastily wiped them away. "But you took that away too, didn't you?"

"You tell me, Irelia! Do you think I did? Do you really think I would do that to you?"

Silence fell on them. Irelia's lips moved to answer him, '_no, you would not._'

Before she could, Zelos fell upon her again, smashing his sword in a wide horizontal arc which made her leap away. "No time to think, Irie! You can just say the words, just say I'm the successor and this will be over!"

"...No." Irelia readied herself, inhaled, exhaled, and surged towards her brother, dagger in hand. "I will not."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I've been swamped with other projects, hence why I haven't been posting that much! Sorry! And why did I do another post of this instead of say, post for a different story? I had to get this scene out, I was having way too much fun with the speculations that people were having and I wanted to be crueler. I'm going to be posting my little project on , and despite it being a Freljordian champion I envisioned, I want to see if you guys would mind/not mind/enjoy my inclusion of him into my version of the Lolverse:

Wolfrik, the Gelid Vortex. I'll be posting his story synopsis and his League judgement soon, along with some questions I expect that can be asked about his role. Thank you Kuzann for your editing and your amazing influence as usual!

Update: Here it is!

story/story_edit_ ?storyid=9185702


	23. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

The blades clashed. Irelia's dagger struck the tip of Zelos' sword and allowed her to slide her weapon down the razor edge. She flicked the Muramana upwards, disengaging their weapons so she could aim a slash at his exposed thigh.

Time slowed down to a crawl in Irelia's mind as she focused on reading Zelos' body language. She could see from the muscle contractions in his abdominals that he was going to move. Since it was on his right side that meant he was going to most likely force a break by trying to kick at her while repositioning his left leg away from her strike.

Her dagger changed trajectory, she flipped the weapon sideways and watched his leg prepare to kick her. With a quick stab, the dagger surged towards where his calf would be, but Zelos kicked his foot up instead, throwing a cloud of dust into her eyes, his feint and distraction a momentary success. His other leg came up and struck her elbow with his knee, making her arm swerve further than she intended.

'_The jugular! Take her jugular! Let her blood splash on your face, let her tears quench your thirst!'_

Luckily for Irelia, she closed her eyes before the attack completely blinded her though some of the dirt and a stray pebble had already struck before she could blink. Despite being somewhat blinded, Irelia did not need to see her target: she could hear the shrieks and cries for blood and death from his sword, and their clamor changed to a dark chorus of triumph. She felt the air shift, parting in a vertical slash, it was coming towards her neck, she had to time it exactly and-

Irelia used the little bit of momentum that Zelos had given her and threw her legs up and over her, her feet struck the flat of his blade while she held her entire body weight up with only her free hand. She made one last attempt to slash at his shin, which forced Zelos to retreat with a huge leap away. Irelia did not resist gravity, and fell back to the ground, gracefully landing on her feet. She brought her dagger up and held it in a preparatory stance while wiping her eyes with her free hand.

In less than three seconds, they were back where they started.

The sword of their father had been embedded in the ground in front of their house, watching over the siblings' duel like a silent sentinel. Its crystalline, crimson heart had a mixture of vermillion and orange auras quietly float about it, the vermillion resembling surging rapids while the orange resembled the trickle of a gentle brook. Every time the siblings clashed, the orange aura would be overwhelmed and engulfed by the vermillion, struggling to maintain its color and shape.

"Why?" Zelos shook his head to and fro, chuckling. His shoulders quaked. "Why, Irelia? Why are you fighting against this?"

Irelia stared at him, not moving, her stance and posture perfect. "You challenged m-"

"So what?" Zelos' head snapped upwards, a manic look in his eyes as he said, "So what if I did, Irelia? Why are you fighting me? Why do _you_ care if you won't be the heir anymore? I'll become the heir whether or not you win this duel."

He threw a hand up and pointed at her. "Meanwhile look at you, look at your so called dream! Walk alongside me? You wanted to be my equal? How dare you? How dare you ever limit yourself in such a stupid way?!"

Irelia did not move, she did not breathe, she simply stared at him.

"What do you want from this life, Irelia?!" he yelled. "Who is Irelia to you? Tell me, damn you, tell me who you are! Are you some diseased pig that is waiting for her throat to be sl-"

Irelia closed the distance between them faster than he could blink. Zelos recognized the technique, it was the one he taught her himself: the "Bladesurge" technique. Her footwork was perfect, her speed was almost comparable to their father's to the point she became a blur. It was only because she slowed from a would be killing blow to wound him that he could even attempt to defend himself. Irelia had progressed above and beyond what Zelos had ever imagined.

His sword hand came up and stopped the dagger from piercing his shoulder, his forearm catching her hand before she could push any further. Yet the raw, physical strength she was using, he had not expected her to be _this_ strong. Irelia easily shoved Zelos down to his knees and started to push the dagger slowly down in an attempt to cut him.

Zelos released the Muramana, allowing his free hand to catch it and attempt a dissuading slash at Irelia's stomach. She barely backed away in time, the tip of the blade caught her armor and tore off a tiny chunk of it with extreme ease.

This allowed him a moment to try and catch his breath, but that was all. Irelia moved forward again, slapping his hand holding sword towards him. The look in her eyes showed that this was planned on her part. Time seemed to slow down for the two, her dagger was aimed to slash at his exposed bicep.

Was it already the end?

No. It could not end like this. He had to keep trying. Zelos dropped to the ground, the blade grazing his long hair as he went down, and attempted to trip her. Irelia sprung herself into the air to evade his strike. She actually managed to perform a flip from her stationary position. Her heel came crashing down towards her brother in a powerful aerial axe kick at his thigh. Zelos managed to roll away in time and her heel slammed itself deep into the desolate dirt, embedding her boot into the earth from the force of the blow.

He rolled himself up to his feet and gripped the Muramana with both hands. Fatigue started to line his face, and his breaths were controlled but carried a ragged tone to them.

Irelia sprung up, her heel kicking up a small cloud of dirt as she did, and took a preparatory stance yet again. Her breath was even and no bead of sweat marred her face. Irelia allowed a morose chuckle to escape. "What is this?"

"This is a duel." Zelos lowered his stance, staring at Irelia while slowly shifting his feet into a stance. It was odd she was asking such a strange question in the middle of their fight.

"No. What is _this_," she said while pointing at him. "What are you doing, Zelos?"

"What _we're_ doing, is trying to hit one another with these sharp objects."

"No. You're not." Irelia took a step towards him, anger smouldering in her cold eyes. "You're holding back."

'_I'm doing what now?_'

"What makes you think that?"

"Stop it. Stop your game." Irelia's shoulders started to shake. Rage? Anger? "Stop lying to me. This is not you trying."

"Wh-"

Irelia rushed him yet again, making him attempt to retaliate with a swipe of his sword, meeting only air. She had jumped above the strike at waist level, but instead of opting for another stab, her free hand's fingers balled themselves into a fist that she fired at his forehead. Zelos barely managed to bring his arm up in time to block the strike, causing the wood armguard to splinter from the force of her punch.

"Where is your speed? Your technique? What is this nonsense?"

Zelos had to retreat again and not just to create distance. She struck the same arm that Udyr had broken before, he could feel the bones crack from the impact.

"Why aren't you taking this seriously, Zelos?" Irelia slammed her hand against her chest, her voice cracking in pitch as she yelled, "Am I such a _joke _to you?"

Zelos' left eyebrow twitched three times. He grinned and pointed the Muramana at her. "A joke? Where's the humor, Irelia?"

'_SLAUGHTER! TASTE HER FLESH! DRINK HER BLOOD!'_

"Stop mocking me, Zelos. You're faster, stronger, more skilled than this. Yet you resort to throwing dirt in my face, blocking instead of dodging, your footwork so sloppy that I don't need to read your intentions in order to catch you off guard. Are you tired? Are you sick? Are your wounds not healed yet? Tell me, we can postpone this ridiculousness until later."

"Heh...Hah. Ha ha. Ha ha ha!"

Zelos burst out into laughter. He planted the Muramana into the ground and continued his laughter for another ten seconds, which only made Irelia grow redder. After he quieted down, Zelos reached over and tightened the wraps on his arm, feeling the bones clumsily shift. He could barely feel pain, it was the only reason why he could stand to continue using the arm. She was approaching him, Zelos needed to delay her a little longer.

"You don't get it, do you? Why do you think I did all of this?"

Irelia did not reply and walked towards him quietly.

"Go on, tell me why you think I did this!"

Irelia was closing the distance between them with slow, steady steps. Her face, usually stern, usually stoic, was now lined with anger, pain and outrage.

"Why, Irelia. Why am I doing this? Tell me!"

"Because you want your rightful position as the Hiten successor. I am sorry, Zelos, but I won't let you take that away from me." Irelia took another step forward. "It's my burden now. It's my weight. It cannot be divided, it cannot be shared. I will not let you walk my path. I don't know how you intend to accomplish-"

"Nope! Wrong!" Zelos let out another laugh, attempting to change his makeshift armguard into a makeshift splint with one hand. "Dad wanted _you_ to be the successor, Irelia. Always did."

This stopped her advance.

"What?"

"You heard me. Before he died, he told me he wanted you to be the successor."

Irelia narrowed her eyes, the coldness replaced by an insulted expression. "There's no point in lying-"

"I am not lying," Zelos shot back. He continued to fidget with his right arm guard, adjusting it so the broken limb would not flop about when he resumed the duel. "Dad wanted _you_ to be the successor."

"You were chosen since the beginning to be the successor."

"I did not want him to make you the successor! Do you know why?" Zelos plucked the Muramana out from the ground with his right hand and twirled it about. The response was slower, but his arm was at least usable for now. "Don't bother answering, you don't know why. You can't even tell me who you are, can you, Irelia?"

"You know who I am, Zelos."

"Tell me." He motioned to her with quick, jerky gestures. "Go ahead. Humor me."

Irelia looked down at her weapon, then replied by throwing her dagger towards his face. He raised the Muramana up to deflect the weapon, but quickly realized he had no need to. It had stopped mid air inches from piercing his forehead.

"What th...Irelia!" he snapped at her. "I told you, no Hiten techniques! What are y-"

"It's not Hiten."

Zelos cocked his head, the expression on his face denoted that the wheels in his mind came to a sudden, grinding halt.

"What?"

"It's not Hiten." Irelia dropped her hands to her sides, her cold lifeless eyes staring into his. The dagger started to slowly float back towards her. "Hiten only made me realize the full extent of my control, of the possibilities. It strengthened it, but it is not a Hiten technique in of itself. I can hear weapons, Zelos. I can feel a weapon's emotions. I can hear them speak. If I touch a weapon with my bare hands, I can even skim the memories of their owners, past and present. Soraka calls it 'psychometry', an extra sensory perception that allows me to read the gathered ki on any weapon that has been used. The more used the weapon is, the more characteristics, the more memories it retains. This is not a Hiten art, it is just me."

'_Pause? She has stopped! Attack! Tear at her heart! Rip it out! Let the blood flow!'_

Irelia balled her hands up into fists, her voice losing any form of anger, of emotion, she sounded as monotonous as Blitzcrank. "In a world of magic, of beings that can be brought back from the dead, of people who can burn entire fields with a gesture, of people who can levitate entire buildings, in a world ripped apart by war, only I can hear the cries of weapons. A corpse may not speak anymore, but the laments of their blades, of their spears, of their arrows and their bullets, they echo."

Irelia threw her hands out, her voice rising in volume as she said,

"That is who I am, Zelos, I am a living weapon. That is who I am, body and soul. My title, it's the 'Will of the Blades'. Do you know how great an honor, and how insulting it is to be called that? To have people whisper in the halls, wondering if I'm a zombie, or a lich, equating my strength only to father's weapon? I try, Zelos, I try to be a person, I try to be a human, I was another step closer until Syndra came. In a single moment, she reminded me of who I am. I am only content because you're here, Zelos. This is not something I want for you. You don't have to do this, you have a clean slate. You can choose who you want to be, Zelos. I'm just tired of fighting all the time. Even now, you're holding back so I don't overexert my-"

'_NOW! SLAUGHTER! REVEL! IMPALE H-'_

"Shut up." Zelos struck the side of his head in exasperation with his free hand. "Just shut up for a minute. Do you hear yourself?"

Irelia's dagger nuzzled itself into her grip once more while she quietly stared at him.

"Why are you fighting me?"

"Because you do not have to be me, Zelos. I chose this path. You can choose anoth-"

"Bullcrap, Irelia! You're fighting me because you don't know what else to do!" Zelos pointed at her once more with the Muramana and said in an accusing tone, "You just admitted it yourself! You don't know what you'd be if you were not the successor. Tell me, Irelia, are you _just_ a weapon, are you _just_ a tool? Is that what everyone who fought for you, fought alongside you, befriended you for? If you want to spit in all of their faces then just die already. No one will miss you, no one will care, you can be replaced by a new tool, so just lie down and die already."

Irelia blinked. She felt a sudden, stabbing pain in her chest, but not from any blade or physical means. It was a purely emotional sensation, a twist in her heart, and it effectively threw her off guard for a split second.

Before Irelia could collect her thoughts, Zelos rushed at her with his own form of the "Bladesurge" attack. A cloud of dust was thrown up as he closed the distance between the two of them in a single bound, his sword swinging at a diagonal arc in an attempt to cut her in half.

'_Dismember! Butcher! Scream! Scream for more! Always screaming, always tears, ha ha ha!'_

Irelia read the trajectory, and attempted to deflect the strike with her dagger only to have it cut in twain. The blue flames that surrounded the blade now started to twist and turn with flickers of orange.

Only by completely disengaging could she avoid the would be killing strike. There was also the blade wind she had to keep in mind, Irelia could not let him win using such a tactic. He readied the Muramana to swing from below in a diagonal arc, from her hip to her shoulder. Irelia pulled back her right side while using used the edge of her dagger's hilt to redirect the slash harmlessly away while retreating.

Irelia was more shocked at the surrealness of the situation than the actual attack itself. She could smell the killing intent that clung to his body like a sulfurous odor. He continued his assault, his sword flying with little precision or skill in any attempt to cut at her, superficial or deadly.

"Just lie down and die like the dog you are, Irelia! Good girl, here's a treat!" he yelled. "Sit, beg, roll over, stay! DIE!"

'_Push! Push! Push! Let her squirm! Let her choke! Let her know futility!_'

Irelia could feel her back press against their old house, the rotted wood and brick threatening to give way at any moment.

He took off again, swinging his blade overhead.

Irelia stepped to his side and fired a jab at his exposed chest. She could feel his bones bend from the force of her strike. Zelos skidded a foot away away, the distance between them was less than a meter. His head snapped up and looked over at her, a disturbing smile on his face, a crazed look in his eye as he asked, "Why are you so scared, Irelia?"

"Scared of what? What am I scared of, why are you trying to kill me, why are you doing any of this, Zelos? Why?!"

"Scared of admitting that you don't know." Zelos stabbed the ground and pointed at the desolate scene all around them. "You don't know what you'd do if it weren't for this, all of this! You say you want to rest, that you want to have some peace, because you don't know what you'd do without war, without combat, without being the successor to the Hiten! You're fighting me tooth and fucking nail now for a position I'm going to get when you kick the bucket in less than a year. This entire fight is utterly pointless!"

"I don't want you to be suf-!"

"We're arguing the same gods damned thing!" Zelos tore the Muramana from the ground, flinging chunks of rock and dirt at Irelia as he took off running at her. "Now tell me what you would do if you were not heir! What are your hopes and dreams, what do you want with your life, what do you want to do?!"

"I already told you, I wanted to be _your _equal, but you threw that in my face!"

"Because it's bullshit, Irelia!" he hollered. "Stop demeaning yourself so much!"

'_END HER!_'

Zelos swung the Muramana again, making Irelia react by instinct. She expected his trick this time, ignored the debris that was thrown at her. Irelia tightened her grip on her broken dagger, bid her time for him to come close enough, and then she struck. Irelia flew past his side. This was it, the end of the duel. In all honesty it was a simple strike to avoid since it was meant to be a feint, to force him to pull back on his own strike. If Zelos did not move, then he would be gutted, which was highly unlikely considering who he was. Irelia saw his legs start to shift, his muscles in his stomach showing he was already moving away from her, doing exactly what she thought he would do. Good, that meant she could use her new position to inflict a non lethal wound, yet all of her instincts, all of her thoughts, came to a grinding halt the moment that a warm splash of crimson liquid on her face.

Irelia felt the broken blade rip across the side of his stomach followed by a spray of crimson. The only reason it did not cut any further was because the dagger struck his ribcage, her fingers releasing the weapon the moment they felt any resistance.

"Hrk!"

Zelos dropped his sword. His knees shook, blood started to billow from his stomach, barely plugged by the dagger.

"Heh heh...Damn. You see this, Irelia? This is why you can't walk next t'me."

Irelia fell forward, not bothering to catch herself. She laid there stunned, all the color in her face completely drained. "Wh..." Her eyes were wide. Her hands shook. What had she just done? "Why...didn't you dodge? Why didn't...didn't you move?"

Irelia started to pound her fists at the ground, sending up tiny puffs of dirt clouds with every strike that connected. "You could have dodged that! Why didn't you dodge? You could have easily evaded it! This fight was yours! You held back! You set this up, you had to! You planned for this! Why didn't you evade my strike?"

"I couldn't, Irelia. Heh...You've come so far, but you're stuck in the past, kinda like how I was." He let out another chuckle. "I was on the ropes the entire time...even cheating, I still lost. Even breaking my own rules, I lost. Dirt in your face, trying to get in your head, blindsiding you, I tried every trick in the book." Zelos pointed at the now quiet Muramana, a small smirk forming on his face. "I don't know how to do your version of the Hiten art,but I came up with a few techniques while on my travels. Even so, mine was inferior in every w-"

Zelos started to violently cough. His body convulsed with every wet heave he hacked, a thick, dark blood sputtering out from his lips.

Irelia could not help but think about what had happened during her League judgment. She had been confronted with the image of their father, along with Zelos. People she had lost from circumstance and from war. It was supposed to be another day of training, but she knew it was not either of them. Irelia had gutted the pale imitation handily, but even after that they tried to mimic the emotion that came with patricide. They tried to keep up the charade, expecting her to break down. She knew better, and when Zelos told her to take the situation seriously due to their father's injury, her response was, "Well he does have a sword sticking out of him."

Tactless humor. A cold demeanor. That was who she was, how she was known to everyone, friend and foe alike. Irelia had enjoyed the fact that the summoners gave her another chance to see her family, and the fact that they asked her how she felt was what caused her first bout of laughter in years.

In years.

Dear gods, she never put thought behind it. The fact that they thought they could replicate, they dared to think they could possibly mimic the warmth of her brother, the happiness that her memories invoked, to think that they had that much ego to think that, "Yes, we can trick her," was a complete and utter insult. That was what brought laughter to her. To think that they could show Irelia what she had lost and fool her into thinking that she had regained it for even a moment was a joke in of itself.

And yet, here was her brother, Zelos, after a decade of being missing, now wrenching his guts out with violent coughs on the ground, in front of her, bleeding to death.

All by her own hand.

"...Zelos... I didn't mean to, I didn't-"

"Relax, Irelia, relax. I won't die for a little while yet. I can talk for a bit longer. The fight's over."

Irelia felt completely numb. "Why?" her voice cracked. She had not heard this tone plague her voice, such a pathetic mewl had not escaped her lips for as long as she could remember. "Why did you do this? Why did you fight me? What was the point?"

"You could never walk alongside me, Irelia." Zelos straightened himself and reached over at the arm guards. With a quick tug at the cloth binding them together, they clattered to the ground. Irelia saw the wound she had inflicted on his arm, an opening on both sides of the flesh. "Do you now see why? Why should you reduce yourself to that of a worm, when you are already a bird?"

Zelos pushed himself to his feet and started to take uneven steps towards Irelia. "Heh...let me see. Let me see the face of the one who so easily bested a fool." Another uneven step and he was directly in front of her. Irelia watched as his shaky hands reached over and cupped her face. He smiled at her, the same smile he usually had on his face. That warm, older brother smile. The one that looked over her when she was a toddler, the one that helped raise her when their father died, the one she saw in her dreams in the hopes that he'd return, the one she prayed to see for every single night for over a decade, now stained with blood.

"I can only crawl on the ground, Irelia, while you were always preparing to soar above me." The tremors through his hands continued with every word he spoke. "If I were a stronger, a more kind person, if I were more like you, perhaps I too, would be allowed to fly by your side. Don't demean yourself to crawl on your belly. Leave that to us earth dwellers."

Zelos leaned over, and before she could react, brought her in for a tight embrace. She had to grab onto the dagger to make sure it did not cut any further than it already had.

"Zelos, stop it. You need healing, we need to get you to Soraka."

"Irelia, there's no stopping death, is there?"

"St-stop it, Zelos. You, you're not dying. You're just wounded." Whose voice was this? Was this hers?

"It's alright, Irelia. Everything comes to an end." He pulled away from her, smiling. "It's an inevitability, right?" Zelos motioned to her to follow him. "Come. The Kinkou will be here in little more than five minutes, they'll deal with me, so we don't have time to waste. I need to speak to you, and I want you to listen to me, alright?"

Irelia could not feel her legs as they moved to follow him. Zelos started to make his way towards the fields. With a casual wave he motioned to their father's blade. It shuddered and lurched forward, only to fall facedown.

Zelos let out a light chuckle, which was followed by a series of violent coughs and spasms. "Only by being reduced to nothing, can you see what you must transcend..." he muttered aloud. Zelos walked over to the Muramana, still clamoring for blood, for violence, and picked it up.

'_Attack! Take her life for your own! Do not falter, gut her as she gutted y-_'

Gripping onto the weapon, Zelos started using the Muramana as a glorified walking stick while he started slowly moving towards the side of their ruined home.

"Irelia...what is more important, the sword, or the sheath?"

"Zelos, you're hurt, you need t-"

Zelos reached up and grabbed the dagger, then gave it a sharp twist which sent out a few squirts of blood. Irelia moved towards him, reaching out to try and stay his hand. Their father's sword sprang to life and sailed towards them the moment Irelia moved, pinning Zelos between his sister and what was now officially her sword.

"Stop," he grunted, more blood trickling down his chin. "Every time you try to dodge what I ask, I'll twist the blade more. Got it?"

Irelia stared at him, not sure how to respond. Was he honestly holding himself hostage?

Another twist of the blade. Dark blood started to ooze, along with what seemed to be a clear gel-like substance. Irelia did not immediately recognize the transparent jelly, plasma was a more viscous liquid, but before she could do much else, her train of thought was interrupted by Zelos.

"Yes or no."

Irelia would figure out what the gel was later, she had more pressing matters to attend to for now. "Stop it, Zelos, you'll-"

"Don't you get it, Irelia? I'm already dead." He smirked at her, tapping the bottom of the dagger. "This didn't kill me. I died the moment I was made one of the successors. Now answer my question: What is more important, the blade, or the sheath?"

"I know this is a philosophical question," she replied. "I would say the sword, but the sheath is the right answer."

"Why?"

* * *

_Zelos held his father in his arms as the man's body convulsed uncontrollably. Each spasm that wracked him became less intense in strength, a morbid timer counting down the final moments of the once great master's life._

"_T-tell me why... w-why is the scabbard...m-more important th-than the sw-sword..." Lito took a breath in, turned to his side and vomited more blood before he pleaded once more, "Tell me why..."_

"_Because although a...a sword, is needed to defeat one's foes, i-it is what...what is needed to protect one's self and to protect others." The young man took a deep breath in, trying to rein in the emotion that was threatening to escape his throat in the form of wild sobs. Once he composed himself, he continued, "I-It can be chipped. It can become stained, rusted, it can and w-will suffer from all facets of its environment, and...and...I-if one's sword is lost, th-then it will fail in its duty. A sword with no sheath, is a...a...dead man walking." Tears started to stream from his eyes, he took another moment to try and control himself, knowing that every moment he wasted could be his father's last. "A sheath, it, it holds the sword, it's what protects it. It's what shades it...shade it, when the sun is too hot. It's what warms it when the winter is...is too cold. it's what..."_

_Zelos bowed his head, his throat clogged from the rampant emotion he was trying to subdue. He let out a few gasps of breath before attempting to speak again. "It's what shelters it when it is not needed to fight a-and, and its what overlooks the blade when it comes home. The sheath...The sheath, can be torn, the sheath can be old and worn out, but it will always cover the sword to its final breath."_

_A cough from Lito made Zelos stop. He instantly inhaled, shoved all emotion aside, and despite his tears, said in a strong voice, "A sheath with no sword, is one without purpose. The sheath is the people, the family, everyone that the sword is meant to protect, and return home to. It is why the sword fights in the first place."_

_Master Lito smiled at Zelos. With trembling hands, he reached up and grabbed Zelos' face. "Magnificent, Zelos. Truly magnificent...Are you a sword, or a sheath?"_

"_I...I don't know, dad. I'm-"_

"_Protect Irelia...Look after her..." With calloused fingers, he wiped away the tears that streamed down his son's face. "No tears...with you here, I am at peace...Tears do nothing...only action..." Behind the smile, Lito's own tears started to pour down his cheeks. "Look after her..."_

_With one last cough, Master Lito fell silent forever._

"_...Dad? Dad?"_

* * *

Irelia shook her head, trying to think of an answer. "Because the sheath is what covers the blade?"

"Exactly," Zelos confirmed. "It is the protector's defender. It is what keeps the blade keen, able to fight, able to protect others, to protect itself, it help carry it wherever it needs to go, to help it rest when the blade is unneeded. It does not judge, it watches over it. It is why a blade can fight at all, to protect those that welcome it home."

He took a step forward, then he fell to the ground, gripping his chest. "This...really sucks, to walk with. Really...hard to...breathe..."

Zelos reached at the knife and attempted to pull it out to no avail. Try as he might, he could not pull it free. Something was preventing him from doing so.

"Don't do it, Zelos," Irelia pleaded.

"Heh...delaying the inevitable, huh?" Zelos shot another grin at her. "Why?"

"Because I don't want you to...to..." in an instant, she fell silent.

"There you go. There's that face," he said, pointing at her. "Now you get one part of the why."

"You...you planned for this?" Irelia's voice rose in volume. "You wanted me to stab you?! You orchestrated all of this just be-"

"I did _not _let you stab me. I had to hold out until we were in a deadlock, where a single strike would determine the victor, and then I had to go for my chance. The more I delayed the fight, the greater the advantage you had. The more you could read my moves, the more I failed, the easier the fight would become. That deadlock was my only chance for victory. The fact that it ended with me being wounded, well..." He chuckled yet again, causing Irelia to quake with rage. "What happens when a worm tries to match strength with a bird?"

"Why...why are you laughing? How is this funny? Where's the humor here?!"

"Nah, not going to say it yet, otherwise you won't get the punchline." Zelos rotated his head about, and dropped his hand from his chest. He started to walk again.

This was supposed to be a short walk, he remembered it took less than two minutes to go around back. This was not good, the Kinkou would be here soon, and it would be too late for him to say his piece and have it convince her.

"What will you do, Irelia, when I die?"

"Zelos, you're not going to die, you-"

"Stop it."

"What?"

"Stop me from dying." Zelos leaned against the decayed wall of their house. The bricks shifted and threatened to give away. "One drop, two drops, thr-"

Zelos started to cough again, gasping and wheezing for air with each momentary pause of respite he was given. "You can't, can you? It's done. It's over."

Irelia fell quiet. Never in her entire life had she ever been as angry as she was now. Angry at herself, angry at Zelos, angry at his current condition, and angry at what Zelos was saying. She had no way to refute this after what she had said, not without being an absolute hypocrite.

"Just admit it, Irelia..." Zelos said in a chuckle. "This is how the lineage of the Hiten will end, with a whimper. No point in fighting. Put the blade down...there's nothing left to fight about...There's always that one battle that none of us can ever win against...So why fight? What's the point of even having a successor, if all it does is make us die an early death?"

"...Damn it." Irelia ground her teeth together, balled her hands up into fists. "Damn it, Zelos. Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

"Nah. No point in damning it. Come here, Irelia..." He motioned to her to follow him. "I want to show you something."

Zelos hobbled forward, Irelia staring at his slowly moving form. His right arm flopped about uselessly, blood dampening the ground with every step he took. He looked like a geriatric on his last legs rather than the spry man she was so used to seeing.

Eventually they were in their fields, and the sight quickly reminded Irelia why she had not wanted to see them in the first place. Scorched beyond reason, absolutely barren, there was no sign of life as far as she could see. It was soul crushing to see their home, their fields, every physical remnant of their memories burnt to cinders.

Zelos continued to hobble over towards a certain spot, a corner of their homestead. Every now and then, he looked back to make sure Irelia was still following him, and every time he did, Irelia could see his smile. He was content.

Then without warning, Zelos fell to the ground. Irelia rushed over to help him, but was stopped by his arm being held up in front of her.

"Look," he said, pointing a trembling finger at the ground.

Irelia leaned over, and let out a short gasp at the sight.

Poking out from the base of the wall was a tiny plant, green with life. On its leaves hung the buddings of chili peppers. Next to it was a sheath made of woven tree bark and flora.

"Do me a favor,and pass the sheath to me."

Irelia quietly grabbed the sheath, their father's sword emitting a high pitched whine only she could hear. She placed the wooden scabbard to her brother, who simply held onto it.

"Thanks."

Zelos leaned forward, nearly slumping down, and stared at the plant. An enthusiastic light sparked in his eyes. "Heh... I thought maybe...Maybe there was something I could do for you, something that we both missed, and never thought we could get back." Zelos allowed the Muramana to clatter to the ground and reached over at the budding peppers. He whispered to them in the strange language of Dryads, which made the leaves seem to curl upwards towards his voice while he spoke to them. After a few sentences, he said, "Thought this'd be a nice gift...They'll take a while, but with care, dedication, they'll come back...Maybe with a little time, a little care, we could spruce the place up a bit, huh?"

Irelia stared at the tiny plant. How did it survive? How was it able to thrive? There was no one to care for it, no one to...Zelos. He was gone for a week.

"Zelos? Did..._you_ do_ this_?"

"...Yeah." Zelos stared at the plant and chuckled yet again. "Kinda silly, isn't it? I barely saw it. Didn't even know it was alive. Just in the corner, all alone, the leaves were wilted, it was struggling, and I thought...I couldn't let it die like this. I'll do what I can to...to help it. Why not...right?"

He shifted his body weight and pressed his back against the wall, next to the plant. With a grunt, he shuffled himself over to not taint the ground near the little chili peppers with his blood. "I think, I want to be buried here. Or maybe at the lake..."

"Zelos, you're not...You're not dying. You're not dying, not like this."

"Even though I may have killed your friend...?" Zelos pressed his hand to his face, wiping the sweat away. "Even despite what I have done, you still love me? You still don't want me to die?"

"Of course I do!" Irelia blurted out. "Of course I love you, Zelos! That was never in question! Just hold on, Zelos, just for a bit. I'll, I can...there has to be some, some herbs, some...I can get some bandages. We can slow the bleeding, we can-"

"Does it matter what we can do?" Zelos let out a snort and shook his head. He gathered his strength for what he was going to say next. "Irelia, when I was in Lokfar, I was a slave. I was treated and used as one. Even so, while there...I met this, this young girl."

His face tilted back, allowing him to stare up at the afternoon sky. "She seemed to be around your age, maybe a bit younger, maybe a bit older. She had a brother, too: Olaf Thrymjaa 13th. His family, my owners, they were the nicest of the Lokfarans to me. Even her father, my _master_, took a liking to me. I never met him, but shortly after I arrived, Olaf left. He wanted to seek new lands, conquer them in his family's name. The first year, she was fine. The second year, she was fine, but by the fourth year, and no sign of his return? His sister became devastated at the thought that he wouldn't return, and I was there. I could see her devastation. I would see her act like her usual self during the day, but at night I heard the light sobs that would cradle her to sleep. This went on for nearly two years. She eventually stopped crying, but at night, she would...change. From that bubbly young woman, to someone I didn't recognize."

Zelos rolled forward, allowing his gi to slip off his shoulder. He motioned to Irelia to come over and look at what he was revealing. The beginnings of a thick scar, most likely from an axe wound, peeked out around his shoulder blade.

"A fight in Lokfar only ends when the conditions of the battle are met: Death, surrender which is usually followed by death, or mercy. I challenged her father once more for my freedom. I had originally stopped after the eighth failed attempt, but I was reinvigorated, and this time, the fight was different. I forget how long the two of us fought for. A day, a week, doesn't matter. The point is that eventually I had weakened him so much a squirrel could have outmuscled him. I did not kill him. I made a deal, I said I'd let him win the duel, keep his honor, if let me go free. He asked...if I wanted, wanted to go home...so badly, and why? Why-"

Zelos let out a few weak coughs, splattering his chest with more blood. Irelia moved to help him, but her hand was batted away.

"No pity. This was all my choice. I told him, I don't want to see cold, frigid place, became a second home to me. I knew its customs, the people started to respect me more despite my...my status, and I probably could have lived happily...eventually. But...I didn't want to leave to see my home. I don't want to leave here because I'm homesick. I don't want to leave to reclaim my honor at home, or my position, I didn't care about any of that. When I woke up with the Dryads, my thoughts were that I needed to get back, to help Ionia, to get to Demacia, to retain my honor, and to keep my promise to you. Traveling thousands of miles, and with every step of the way, of the pain, every single night, every single day, I thought about it, and most of those matters started to fade away."

Zelos raised his head slightly, and smiled at Irelia. "Honor, ha ha, oh _honor_:..What a bullshit concept. That was first to go, when I realized how many years I spent on that damn island. My worth as a man... Lokfar taught me how easy that can be broken. But, Ionia...? I kept hanging onto coming back for my homeland, when I started to think that maybe, maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I didn't see home again. What never left me, though...was a promise. I needed to see my sister again, no matter what."

He let out a soft laugh and tapped at his shoulder. "That was when he swung his axe about and nearly cut me in half...He spared me, in an act of 'mercy', and said I would only gain my freedom on one...one condition: That if I find his son, that I tell him his family is waiting for him to come home."

Zelos' smile faded. "I said yes. And despite the protests, despite the rumors that were started about the big guy being spared by me and was shipping me off to hide his weakness, he packed me up on a dinghy, and off I went. I wasn't sure if I'd make it this time, but I kept thinking that if I had the chance to see you again, it didn't matter what I did to do so. I couldn't die, not then, not when I made a promise..." He let out a sigh and rested the back of his head on the wall behind him. "Irelia, why did you fight me?"

She did not reply. Irelia sat herself next to him and bowed her head. Their father's sword settled itself next to her, face down as she idly stroked the flat of the sword.

"Why?" he pressed again.

"I don't know." Irelia's green eyes began to shimmer. "I just...It's me. It's my position."

"That I'm...I'm, gonna get any ways," he wheezed.

"I know. It's stupid, I know that, but nevertheless...It's me. I became the heir, never formally so, but it was an assumption that I am to be the successor because you were not here, and I wanted to show everyone how I could carry it, how I am not just a replacement for you."

Zelos smirked and stretched his hand out. He rested it on top of Irelia's head as he said, "Stop that. You're being dumb."

She instantly became flustered. Her face started to become red, her mouth moved to say something in response when Zelos continued.

"You can't replace me, Irelia. That would mean that there was competition for you in the first place. I didn't lie to you, never have. I said you would surpass me, and look at you now. Heh...truly magnificent. This is what you want, this is who you are now, the heir. But that, is just one facet of you."

"...You did lie."

"Hm?"

"You said you killed her."

Zelos started to laugh, only to be silenced by his gasps for air. He clutched his wounded side and pressed against the dagger, attempting to stem the blood flow further. "I didn't lie about that."

Irelia's voice rose in volume. "No. I refuse to believe that. You wouldn't, not her."

"Why?"

"Because..." She went quiet. Irelia looked away, staring at the fields about her. Eventually her eyes wandered back to the small, green plant. "Because you didn't come here to hurt me. You wouldn't hurt a friend of mine, even if it meant it hurt you. You did this...to help." She quickly added, "How you planned on doing this, is still an absolute mystery. Zelos, please, explain to me, what is going on.

"The Kinkou will be here in less than a minute, Irelia." Zelos let out a sigh and closed his eyes. "You have one choice, I tell you what's going on, or what happened with your...'_friend'._"

Irelia wasted no time and asked, "Why did you lie about Riven?"

* * *

He let a snort, his smirk widened into a toothy, blood stained smile. "You see that?" Zelos' hand slid off her head and flopped down to his side. "There is more to you. You're a kinder, gentler, far better person than I...I could ever hope to be. More forgiving, more warm, more...everything. Why would you ever dare compete with me, when you're passing me in the race?" He shifted his posture and tried to rest himself a bit more comfortably before saying, "I didn't lie to you, Irie. I never said I killed her, I said I talked to her."

_Zelos swung his Manamune in a wide arch at Riven. The woman did not move, did not break eye contact with him, and watched as the blade missed her by millimeters. The Manamune swung over and landed on Zelos' neck. He gave the sword a sharp tug, expecting it to slice his jugular open when the soft sound of metal parting flesh filled the air._

_Riven grabbed onto the blade, allowing the edge to cut deep into her fingers, only stopping because it caught on her bones._

"_What are you doing?"_

"_I can ask you the same thing," he crowed back. "What are you doing?"_

"_I could see it in your eyes, you did not come here to kill me. What then, is the purpose of your presence?" Riven's grip did not slacken. "Why are you here."_

_The two stared at one another until Zelos released his sword. Riven held it aloft, then drew it to her side and flicked the weapon upwards. She caught the blade once more, then she gave it a quick inspection. Her wounded fingers ran along the hilt, hitting a ridge which made her tug at the bindings that wrapped it. A white piece of cherry wood was hidden under the wraps, with Ionian characters written on it. After sliding the wrappings back into place, she held the hilt out towards Zelos with her left hand. _

_He took it from her while saying, "I wanted to see why she would call you friend."_

"_I am aware of what I have done. The past is never going to change, and as horrible as this may sound, I am not sure if I want it to." The blood dripped from her hand onto the floor at a steady pace. "I wish the deaths, the atrocities committed, all of the horrid events that occurred could be erased, yet if they had not happened, I would have undoubtedly remained the same monster I was. Unable to see past my nose, unable to think for myself, following orders without question, I was a tool. I am sick of all the killing and the reek of death, but that will never leave me. It is a part of who I am. I am here in Ionia now to start trying to make right what I have done, and it will take the rest of my life to do so despite this first step, but I'm not running. If you want to kill me, you have every right to it. So does anyone else. I will not, however, let you kill me. My death will not absolve anything. The exchange of my life will not bring back those who died by my hand. I will do everything in my power to make matters right."_

"_And who's to say that what you're doing is right, huh?" Zelos grabbed the hilt, glaring at Riven._

"_Irelia." She matched his glare. "If I ever falter from my path, if I show signs of relapse, if my views, my morals become skewed, then she has promised me that she will end me. Until then, I will not allow anyone else to kill me."_

_Zelos let out an incredulous grunt and gave the Manamune a slight tug, signalling to Riven that he wanted his weapon back. She released the blade and watched as he tucked it into a makeshift sheath, made from what seemed to be bark and other plant materials, that hung off his belt. He muttered aloud, "Doesn't have that much time to do that in, then."_

"_That much time?" She cocked an eyebrow, her tone conveyed her confusion. "What do you mean, that much time?"_

"_What do you mean what do I mean?" He waved her off. "Unless she's going to kill you in a year, then that promise is moot."_

"_I never gave her a deadline."_

"_Next you're going to tell me you didn't know she's ill," Zelos growled in exasperation. "No point in pretending, everyone else knew but me, let's all whisper and walk on glass while Zelos is about so no o-"_

"_She's not ill. She was wounded from the fight with Syndra. She told me this."_

"_...Are you screwing with me?" Zelos rolled his eyes. "It's hard to tell with you. Can't tell if you have a sense of humor. The fight with Syndra, yeah it sucked, but it amplified her condition. She's going to die in a year and-"_

_Before he could finish his sentence, Zelos found himself suspended above the ground and gasping for air. Riven's blood soaked hand was dropped down to her side, her fingers unable to curl, while she tightly clenched his throat with her left hand and easily lifted him upwards. Her voice was nearly guttural as she demanded, "Tell me everything. __**Now**__."_

_Zelos nodded, which made her release him. The moment he caught his breath, he began to talk, explaining everything that he knew. From what the Hiten art was, the myth behind it, to what Soraka said about Irelia. Zelos could swear that with every word he spoke, he could see the woman get more upset, her eyes glimmering with a rage he saw in very few beings._

_Once he finished his explanation, Riven asked, "Is that everything?"_

"_As far as I know, yeah."_

"_I see."_

_Riven spun on her heels and walked into another room, leaving Zelos behind. He blinked, caught unaware by the action, and called out, "What are you doing?"_

_A loud thud was the response he received. When she came back, Riven was holding a monstrously large sword over her left shoulder. To call it a sword would insinuate it was meant to be held by people. The immediate thought that sprung to Zelos' mind was not how she was able to hold such a weapon; the first thought that sprung to mind was that if he had attacked her, she would have completely destroyed him._

_Riven silently walked past Zelos, making him catch his reflection in the polished black surface, he could see his own surprised facial expression. "Where are you going?"_

_Once more, she did not give him a verbal reply. Riven's right hand, now bandaged, clumsily grabbed the door handle, threw it open and walked out of the building. Zelos ran into the other room to see where she had gone. It was more of a military hostel than a private room, with multiple beds lining the walls, each with their own trunks for clothing and other personal items. His eye caught the deep indentations in the woodwork next to one of the many beds, and immediately discerned it to be hers. An idea sparked in his mind, and he opened the trunk. It was most definitely hers, Zelos recognized the shirt she wore to the Placidium perfectly folded atop other articles of clothing. It seemed to be one of her working shirts from the dirt stains, but it did not matter, it would aid his plan._

_Zelos grabbed the shirt, stuffed it into his gi, and took off running after her. He heard a voice holler out to her._

"_{Riven, where are you going?}"_

"_{I will be back in a week, Liu. I apologize for the suddenness,}" she replied, not bothering to look at the stunned man on the rooftop. _

_Zelos was ready to take off sprinting after her, but was stopped by the children that he saw with her from before, forming a chain in front of him. Why were they doing this?  
_

"_{D-don't...}" a young girl said, slightly trembling in front of him. "{Don't hurt her...}"_

_His mind worked quickly, already knowing what his responses were going to be. "{I'm not going to hurt her.}"_

"_{But you did!}" the girl protested. {"She's bleeding!}"_

"_{It was an accident, her hand slipped when she was handling my sword,} he replied while his left eyebrow twitched three times. "{I had heard of her skill and I wanted to challenge her to a spar.}"_

"_{Why would that take a week?}"_

"_{I have no idea, that's why I need to catch up to her and ask her.}"_

_The children looked at one another, not sure what to do. The young girl swallowed nervously, a loud gulping sound, and asked, "{D-do you promise?}"_

"_{I swear on the grave of my father, I will not hurt her.}"_

_The children looked at one another once more, and slowly parted, giving him passage. Truthfully, he probably could have walked around them, but it was more principle of the matter, and that they needed very little explanation for the "why" bit. Time really was of the essence, any minute Irelia could recover and go out looking for him._

_Zelos ran past the children after the fleeting image of Riven down the winding road that led out of the village. It was surprising how quickly she moved, especially when one considered her sword's weight. It seemed to be an inconsequential factor to her, and the pace she marched at forced Zelos to break into a sprint in order to catch up to her. When he managed to, Zelos cut out in front of her and effectively broke her stride._

"_What do you think you're doing?"_

"_I am going to talk to Irelia."  
_

"_And the sword's for talking?"_

"_If she does not listen to reason, then she will have to carry out her promise." Riven's eyes narrowed, her tone lowered. "If she has to die, I refuse to let her die a liar. If she is unable to kill me, then that means I must adjust the promise."_

"_Why do you care?"_

"_Why do you?"_

_Zelos drew back and let out a condescending snort. "I'm her brother, that's why."_

"_And she is my friend." Riven shifted the sword's weight on her shoulder and readjusted her grip. "That is all the reason I need. She will not die, not like that. She will not succumb to illness. For all that she has done, she's condemned to such a pitiful death? No. I refuse to believe that is the only option."_

"_And what will you do to help her, huh? It's not like you can help extend her life." Zelos crossed his arms and glared at Riven. "What's your genius plan to aid her?"_

"_...I don't know," she admitted. "I don't have one. I will talk to her, I will ask her, and I will see what I can do to help. A solution will be found one way or another."_

"_And if there is one already available?"_

_Riven tilted her head, glaring back at him. Her voice dropped a tone, making her sound far more frightening than she had prior to this. "What are you planning?"_

"_An heir wasn't chosen."_

"_And this means?"_

"_To the Hiten art, it was never formally announced that I, or she, would be the heir."_

"_The point?"_

"_I wish to fix that."_

_Riven quickly proved that she could, in fact, wield her blade with absurd ease. By the time he blinked, the edge of her sword was pressed against his neck, a gust of wind making his clothing billow about. "She earned that title. You will not take that from her."_

_Her amber eyes seemed to flick about his body, trying to take in every possible detail._

"_Will you hurt her?"_

"_No," his left eyebrow twitched three times._

_Riven tilted her head. "Are you jealous that she is the successor and you are not?"_

"_It's not offi-"_

"_Yes or no."_

"_No," he admitted._

"_Will your plan succeed?"_

"_I don't know."_

_No twitch this time._

_Riven pressed her blade a little harder on him. Her expression resembled an angered hawk, ready to cut him down if he misspoke a single word. "What are you willing to do for her? What are you willing to give for her sake?"_

"_All that I have."_

_This statement hung in the air and made Riven's demeanor soften slightly. The muscles in her face started to relax. After a few moments, she asked, "Why then are you here, and not there, seeing to her?"_

_Zelos let out a chuckle and smiled at Riven. "I needed to make sure."_

"_Make sure of what?"_

"That she was still the same gentle, kind girl she once was. The one who was able to look past and see 'you'. I wanted to make sure, that she was still the same little sister that I had grown to respect and love so much. If you were anything else but how you are, I would have killed you." He shrugged his unladen shoulder. "Or at least tried. You, I will never forgive you, but I will tolerate you so long as Irie is your friend."

_Riven stared at him, not removing her weapon quite yet. "Will your plan fail?"_

_His eye twitched three times. "No."_

"_Do you know what needs to be done?"_

"_Yeah, I do. She needs to remember who she is."_

"_And this will help her how?"_

"_Hopefully it'll help extend her life."_

_Riven nodded once more. "Two more questions. What are you planning to do with that sword?"_

"_Duel her, why?"_

"_It's a Manamune. They are not just given out. Is it yours, or did you steal it?"_

_His left eyebrow twitched three times. "It's mine."_

"_No it isn't."_

"_What makes you say that?"_

"_Is your name Himura Sojiro?"_

"_...What?"_

_Riven pointed with her chin at the Manamune. "In its wrapping, a piece of carved wood is there. Irelia made a custom hilt for a particular guard under her command, and no one else under her command. She did not want to appear like she was playing any form of favoritism, and decided this was the best way." Her tone did not drop any lower, but the look in her eyes showed that she had him where she wanted him. "Your left brow twitches uncontrollably three times whenever you lie. If this is because you are a poor liar or because of the subject matter, I do not know, but I want to know this: Will whatever you're planning help her?"_

_Zelos was taken back by the sudden flurry of information that Riven threw at him. "I hope so," he eventually replied._

"_You're not sure?"_

"_It should work. Keyword, should."_

"_Two weeks." Riven drew her sword back and rested it on her own shoulder once more. "I will give you two weeks. I will go to the Placidium and see her, and see how she is faring. If you have failed, then I will try."_

_Zelos reached over and started to rub at his sore shoulder. "What's stopping you from trying now."_

"_Will what you're doing work?"_

"_I hope so."_

"_That is why," Riven affirmed. "She needs hope."_

_Zelos stared at the woman for nearly a minute in silence, then burst out in laughter. Riven did not react to this, and simply watched him until he calmed down. "So that's why...Hahaha! That's why. I get it now. The final piece of the puzzle."_

"_Hm?"_

_Zelos gave Riven a warm smile. "I get why she can call you friend now."_

_With that, he turned around and walked down the road opposite of the way to the village. "You better go back, your fanclub will be worried for you." Zelos stopped for a moment before reaching into his gi. He rummaged through it and drew out a small pouch that he tossed towards Riven. "Here, a healing salve. Has a little more kick to it than usual ones, and it'll help with the hand till you get to a proper healer."_

_Riven stood there until she could no longer see him. Once he was out of sight, she shook her head and headed back towards the village. Her eyes softened, and worry started to swim in her mind._

* * *

Irelia glared at Zelos, her cheeks growing red. "But you implied-"

"I implied nothing, I said that I talked to her. It's not my fault that you thought I meant otherwise."

She let out a soft laugh and rested her head against his shoulder. "You can be such a jerk sometimes..."

"Yeah. I know, Irie. I know..." With a sigh, Zelos reached over and clasped his hand over her shoulder. "It's time."

Irelia looked at him, somewhat confused, than a feeling of dread washed over her. People were here. Her emerald eyes flicked to her left, staring out at the barren fields, and she saw them: The Kinkou.

They stood in a triangular formation, Shen at the front, Akali at his right, Kennen at his left, and they were looking back at her.

"The duel is over, then?"

Zelos let out a weak cough and nodded his head.

"I need a verbal confirmation if you are able to still speak."

"Y-yeah...It is..." he said in a whisper.

Irelia stood up, their father's sword sparked to life and flew to her side. "What is this?"

"A duel for successorship has taken place," Shen clarified. "The Kinkou are tasked with the overview of Balance."

Irelia's face quickly contorted into anger. "He's fallen. He can't get up."

"It does not matter. He lost. He is no longer a candidate for successorship. You are now the current, and legitimate, master of the Hiten style. He must relinquish his position."

Irelia looked at Akali, but could only see her impassive eyes due to the ninja's face being mostly hidden by her mask. Kennen's demeanor did not bode any better.

"Kennen."

"Yes, Shen?"

"She looks confused."

"She is."

Shen's head moved ever so slightly to let him stare at Zelos. "You said you would tell her."

"Heh...guess it...slipped my mind..."

Irelia's shoulders relaxed for a brief moment, she was not exactly sure what was going on yet, but her suspicion and paranoia ran high. Shen took a step forward. Irelia raised her hands upwards and held them out in front of her. With a quick, sweeping gesture, her sword swung out and split apart. The four blades had vermillion chi encircle them, trailing upwards from the crimson jewel. The sword resembled a steel flower, each blade pointing directly at Shen in an attempt to halt his advance.

"Explain your intentions, Eye of Twilight."

"There seems to be a misunderstanding. We are not here to harm, we are here to judge."

Shen took a step to his left, and revealed Soraka standing behind him. The Starchild's face was a mixture of worry, confusion, and anger. "Zelos!" she called out. "You promised me you weren't going to do anything foolish. What do you call this?!"

Zelos allowed his head to hang down. He eventually replied with, "The best plan ever?"

Soraka let out an annoyed sigh and started moving towards the siblings.

"It seems that there are matters that need to be clarified."

"...Yeah...There are. I relinquish my right to successorship."

Shen nodded, and looked over at Akali. Before the ninjas could say anything, Zelos grabbed at the dagger and tore it across his stomach. Irelia turned around in time to see him throw the broken weapon to the side, slump down, and become still. Shock sparked in Akali's eyes, Soraka froze from shock, Kennen let out a low whistle while Shen glanced at the crumpled man.

Irelia slowly turned around and looked down at the scene, her face drained of all color.

"Zelos?"

* * *

Author's Note: Thank you KuzAnn once more for being my bestest editor and for constantly putting up with me and my ramblings, thank you all of my readers for reading what I write, and I'm letting you know that yes, I am still writing, I'm just trying to balance my own OC work and fanfiction and a bunch of real life stuff, so if updates are slow, do forgive me. I will finish these stories, and with that said, this story here is almost done!

Once I finish this and Equinox, both close to finishing (This is 90% done, Equinox I would say is about 70%), I'll be able to write some more short stories and mix it up with the Riven sequel along with the editing I really, really need to do for Blade Reforged, NaNoWriMo, and select short stories. Once I have some of my OC stuff done, I'll be posting it up in and in these forums, thank you!


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